Counting Stars
by Alex Beckett
Summary: Ziva has been at NCIS for a year now and is happily fitting in, but one night, she finds herself in a situation that she would have never expected to be in in a million years, and she needs help navigating through its murky waters. Who exactly will she turn to?
1. Ziva

**Disclaimer: I own only what I make up!**

 **Author's note: This is my first NCIS story, and I'm currently working my way through season 8 on Netflix. I just had this idea in my head and had to write it out; please be kind :)**

* * *

Tony was confused, and as usual, it was because of Ziva.

She'd been acting very odd for the past few months—she was more distant than was normal for her, was always tired and making excuses about not hanging out with anyone from the team after work, especially for casual things, and even her wardrobe had changed—instead of her usual tight clothing, everything she'd been wearing lately seemed to be resting loosely on her body. Ziva David was not a woman who purposefully sported baggy clothes… until now. She also seemed sad all the time.

Tony noticed these changes in Ziva because she was usually the subject of his daydreams, and also because though they drove each other insane on a daily basis, they were still friends, and he cared about her well-being.

That was why, even though it would probably make her suspicious at first, Tony found himself in the grocery store at seven o'clock on a Saturday night, putting together a shopping cart of things that he hoped would cheer Ziva up.

In the middle of that, Ziva actually called him, in tears, and asked him to come to her apartment as quickly as possible. Tony was extremely taken aback, but he promised her he would come immediately, even heading straight to the check-out line as they wrapped up their conversation.

Luckily, Ziva's apartment building wasn't that far from the grocery store, and he was knocking on her front door less than fifteen minutes later.

* * *

"Ziva?" Tony called.

"The door is unlocked, Tony!" she called back, sounding as upset as she had on the phone. "Please come in!"

Tony entered his friend's apartment, and it wasn't until he turned around from shutting the door and hanging up his coat that he saw Ziva and words failed him.

For starters, she was dressed more casually than he'd ever seen her in an open button-down shirt, a tank top and sweatpants, and her hair was free of its usual confinements and cascading down her back; it was like she'd given up on trying to tame it tonight. Because her hair was as long and thick and curly as it was, Tony knew for a fact that Ziva had always had always preferred keeping it out of her face. Tony was also sure that Ziva wasn't wearing any makeup.

As if Tony wasn't already taken aback, the feeling skyrocketed when he saw that Ziva wasn't alone—in her arms was a baby girl who was dressed for bed and couldn't have been more than six months old. And had it been Tony's imagination, or had he seen a second child, maybe a small toddler, disappear behind the couch when he came in?

As he took the scene in, Ziva said anxiously, "I suppose you think a little differently of me now, yes?"

"No." Tony said quickly. "I actually don't, but this _does_ answer a few things I've been wondering lately."

Ziva nodded towards the grocery bag in Tony's right hand. "What is in there?"

"I was at the grocery store when you called, collecting things to cheer you up. I got your favorite food, drinks, and ice cream."

Hearing that, Ziva's heart lightened considerably for the first time that night, and she almost cried more than she already had been, but she kept herself together.

"Thank you, Tony. That is very, very nice of you." she told him. "How about you go put everything away, and when you come back, I will make the proper introductions and explain what is going on?"

"Okay, but I think that you've got someone hiding behind the couch."

Realizing this, Ziva waited until Tony was in the kitchen before heading to the couch and standing at the head of the space between it and the wall.

"Ella Brave, what have I said about going behind there?"

"It's a no-no?" she queried in her high-pitched little girl voice.

"Exactly. Now please come out."

Ella Brave hesitated. "Who was that?"

"He is my friend, and his name is Tony. I called him because I wanted to see him."

"He is gentle?"

"Yes, my dear little friend. He is _very_ gentle."

Mostly because she was extremely tired, Ella Brave emerged from her hiding spot and clambered up onto the couch, snuggling with Ziva when she sat with her. At almost three years old, Ella Brave had a naturally tan complexion, big brown eyes and beautiful brown shoulder-length hair that was presently devoid of it's usual pigtails. Currently, she was dressed in pink footie pajamas decorated with unicorns. To an outsider, she looked like Ziva's biological daughter, as did the baby in Ziva's arms.

"Is there any room for me?"

Tony had come back and was watching the scene, waiting for an invitation.

"Of course, Tony." cradling the baby in one arm, she patted the empty space beside her. "Please come sit."

When Tony made himself comfortable, he remarked, "I never thought I'd see the day when you were maternal or with children, and _willingly,_ Z. What's happening?"

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "What is the phrase when you are dating someone, but you decide to end things in a not so nice way?"

"Dumped." Tony supplied. "Is that what happened?"

Ziva nodded. "I was dating a Marine lieutenant for the past few months, and he dumped me because I told him something that he did not want to hear."

"Is there anything I can do?" Tony asked seriously.

Ziva shook her head. "Other than just be here with me, there is nothing that you can do. But thank you."

"Any time. Seriously."

A small smile flitted across the brunette's lips, and when the baby in her arms gave an impatient wiggle, Ziva gave her a kiss on the forehead.

"I did not forget about you, Alush."

Comforted by the sound of Ziva's voice, the baby gave a huge yawn and began grizzling Ziva's chest. In turn, Ziva spoke to Tony again.

"Will you please give me that bottle on the end table beside you?"

Tony looked and spotted a baby bottle full of infant drinking formula and handed it to Ziva. She gave it to the baby who immediately latched on and began suckling contently, even going so far as to close her eyes in enjoyment. Pleased the little one was happy, Ziva continued on.

"My ex, his name is Lieutenant Miles Shockley, and these are his children."

With an elbow, she indicated the toddler beside her, who was now fast asleep.

"The firstborn is Ella Brave, and she turns three on Christmas Day."

That was just over a month away.

"Ella Brave is a cool name." Tony mused. "I take it that you're holding her sister?"

"Yes. She is now six months old, and her name is Alison Joy."

Hearing her name, Alison Joy made a sound that was a cross between an extremely amused laugh and a coo, prompting Ziva to give her an extra cuddle.

"Good job recognizing your name!" she praised. "Good job!"

Alison Joy cooed again and settled in to finish drinking her bottle, so Ziva resumed her explaination to Tony.

"The way that I understand it, Miles' marriage to his wife Moira was on the pebbles—"

"On the _rocks."_ Tony corrected automatically.

"On the rocks," echoed Ziva, taking the correction in stride. "And she did not even want a second child. She took her own life when Alison Joy was just a few weeks old, even though she and Miles were about to divorce. He was to get full custody because she wanted out."

"But what? Moira couldn't wait?"

"Yes."

"And when did you meet Miles?"

"A little over four months ago at a bar, and I met the children not long after."

"You love the kids, don't you?"

Ziva nodded. "I did not think that I would, but I do."

"You look really great with children."

Before Ziva could respond to that, Alison Joy had finished her bottle, so Ziva put it aside and busied herself with getting the little one to burp. Once that had been achieved, Ziva rocked her to sleep, only relaxing again when Alison Joy began sawing logs.

Tony hated to break up the moment, but he still had a question burning in his brain. "What did you tell Miles that made him dump you?"

Ziva's answer was blunt. "I am having a baby."

Tony opened his mouth, only to close it again quickly because he didn't know what to say.

Ziva keeping quiet she was in a relationship was one thing because in the year she'd been part of the NCIS team, they'd learned that she was a very private person. Keeping quiet that she had unconventionally come a mother was _also_ another thing, but not spilling the beans about a pregnancy? Tony was both impressed that she'd managed to do it, but also confused that she was pregnant at all because although it was becoming clear that she had a maternal side, she had just never struck him as the type to _want_ to physically be in the family way.

Finally, he said, "Mazel tov, David. How are you feeling?"

"Surprised and exhausted. I did not know for quite awhile that the baby is even there, but remember how I came in later to work this morning?"

Tony nodded. "Uh-huh, and you wouldn't say where you were. It was the doctor's office, wasn't it?"

"Yes, because I figured it out the day before yesterday, and I am actually further along than I thought. But I saw the child on the screen and heard the heartbeat."

"Everything check out alright?"

Ziva's eyes filled with tears as she nodded. "I left the doctor's office knowing that I _really_ want this child. What do you think?"

Tony reached over and wiped Ziva's tears for her. "I think that if you ever need any help or someone to go get your ice cream and pickles or whatever, you can call me, and also that this means that you've grown a lot in the past year."

Ziva turned to putty. "I have always wanted to be a mother, believe it or not, but I just did not imagine that it would happen this way."

"I don't think anyone in your situation would. Where did Miles even _go?"_

Ziva sighed. "I do not know, nor do I wish to. The children were here with him, visiting, when I told him about the baby, and he got so upset that he just left."

If anything, Tony was appalled now. "Ziva, he just committed child abandonment, leaving his kids here, and that's a _felony."_

"I know, and I refuse to give them away, especially after what I found in Ella Brave's backpack."

"Which was?"

"Documents that state he does not want the girls anymore, and that he is relinquishing custody, on one condition—that I take them. I will do it, but I am so confused."

"That's only natural."

"Of course, and he has never hurt any of us, but we _have_ seen him drunk before; he has a _frightful_ temper. I am glad that Ella and Alison can have peace now, but I would like to see Miles at least one more time, just to try to understand _why."_

Fully invested in Ziva and her unconventional family now, Tony asked, "Would you like me to find him for you?"

"No, but thank you. If you left right now, I would be alone, and I do not want that. Oh…"

"What? What is it?"

Ziva had suddenly let out an audible puff of air and was again cradling Alison Joy in the football hold as she rubbed soothing circles over her bump with her free hand and spoke to the baby in Hebrew.

After a moment, she smiled at Tony. "It is nothing. She started moving this afternoon, and it is taking some getting used to."

"You're having a daughter?"

Ziva bobbed her head in confirmation, very proud. "I will make sure with her, and Ella and Alison, that they will not grow up as I did."

Beside Ziva, Ella Brave let out a massive sneeze in her sleep, rubbed her nose, and slept on.

"Will you put her in the guest bedroom please, Tony?" Ziva asked her friend. "That is where she sleeps when she is here."

Tony obliged, secretly turning to mush when Ella Brave snuggled up to him as she slept.

When he returned from tucking her in, he saw that Ziva had laid Alison Joy in the portable bassinet near the couch and was now finally relaxing, tracing shapes over her baby bump, which now that Tony knew actually was a baby bump and not Ziva packing on food pounds, was very obvious. She was even smiling as she interacted with her baby.

A year ago, Ziva had blazed onto the scene, chasing after her brother in the wake of Kate's death. She had orders to take him out, although when she did, she did it to keep in from killing Gibbs, a man that she had hardly know at the time, but was now becoming a close friend of hers. After that was all over, they all assumed that that was that, and that Ziva would be going back to Tel Aviv, but she surprised even herself when she stayed in Virginia and joined the NCIS team.

A year later, she was part of the family and showing her true colors as a person who, despite her status as an elite trained assassin for the Mossad, was not only witty and sarcastic, but also warm and a very good friend.

Somehow, it just seemed fitting that she'd become a mother.

"Ziva, can I ask you something?" Tony asked as he sat with her again.

"Sure."

"Why did you call me, instead of the others?"

"Gibbs and Director Shepherd are too much like parents to me, Abby would buckle, Ducky is already taking care of his mother, and I do not think that McGee or Palmer would know where to even begin."

"So that leaves me?"

"Yes, and thank you for coming so quickly. I thought that you would be busy."

"You're welcome, and for once, I actually wasn't busy on a Saturday night. Is there anything you need now? Are you hungry?"

Right on cue, Ziva felt her stomach emit an audible rumble. "I think we _both_ are."

Tony stood and stretched. "Then you just chill out and you do whatever it is that Israeli assassin princess ninjas do for fun while I go make something in the kitchen."

Ziva smiled at Tony's litany of descriptors. "Alright, Tony, and thank you again."

Tony had to resist the urge to kiss her, even on the forehead, because pregnant or not, Ziva would still deck him.

He repeated his promise from earlier. "Any time, Ziva. Any time."

* * *

Meanwhile, over in Rock Creek Park, Lieutenant Miles Shockley was running as fast as he could down a hiking trail in the dark. He had a large amount of money in the duffel bag he was carrying, and someone on his tail.

He needed the money, but he also needed to still be alive to use it when he started over, so when the person behind him called out, threatening him, he put on an extra burst of speed. Numerous twigs and patches of snow continued to crunch under the soles of his favorite steel-toed boots.

He was almost clear when—

 _BANG! BANG!_

The sound of gunshots rent the air as two bullets ripped through Miles' body and he fell to the ground in an abrupt unceremonious manner, dead.

* * *

 **More?**


	2. Morning Time

Tony stayed over that night, at Ziva's request, sleeping on the fold-out couch in the living room. As a result, Tony ended up playing house with her in the morning.

More awake, Ella Brave was enamored with Tony, and she even kept giggling at all of his jokes, eventually comfortable enough to let him make her breakfast and help her get dressed. When it came to getting her hair done, though, Ziva did that, teaching Tony about the finer points of braiding hair as she put Ella Brave's hair into two fine plaits.

As for Alison Joy, she was just happy to have two adults in her life who loved her unconditionally. For obvious reasons, she wouldn't ever remember her biological parents, but Ziva and Tony were as good as that to her, and they made her happy, so all was right in her world.

And Ziva had no way of knowing yet that Miles was dead, but she was so upset with him for abandoning her, the baby, and the children that she decided that it would be best to just let the sleeping dogs lie on that one.

So instead of worrying about him, Ziva arranged for an early-morning before-work meeting with Director Shepard to update her on the situation. It wasn't like she doubted that her friend would believe her about the children because she (and Gibbs) had already knew about the pregnancy, but she Ziva wanted her to meet them before she brought them to their nanny's house.

* * *

"Tony can't come?" Ella Brave inquired in a tone of astonishment.

"No, baby dove, but he will be waiting right here when we come back."

Ella Brave turned to Tony for confirmation. "You will wait?"

Tony held one of the little girl's fingers to his lips and kissed them gently. "You bet, kid. I won't go anywhere."

Ella Brave breathed a sigh of relief and gave Tony a peck on the cheek before settling on his lap to wait.

They were all currently in the waiting area of Director Shepard's office, waiting to be allowed to let in. Tony and Ziva were sitting side-by-side on the sofa by the door. Ella Brave loved Ziva, no question, but she really was fond of Tony and just couldn't get enough of him. Alison Joy, on the other hand, was resting contently in Ziva's arms. She'd been in her car seat, but she fussed at Ziva until she let her out. She was as happy as a clam after that, getting extra cuddly. Ziva didn't say it, but it already looked like the kids were playing favorites with her and Tony.

She kind of liked it because just for a little bit, it felt like they were a family.

"Officer David?"

Ziva looked up at the sound of her name to see the secretary hanging up her phone and looking at her.

"Yes?" she replied.

"Director Shepard is ready to see you now."

Ziva thanked her and sat Alison Joy on her hip when she stood. It took a little bit of coaxing after that and one last hug, but Ella Brave slid off Tony's lap and followed Ziva into the office, not straying far from her side.

This will be fun, Ziva thought as they entered the office.

Jennifer 'Jenny' Faith Shephard had been good friends with Ziva for just over four years, and she was fond of her in the way that an older sister was of a younger one. And even though she was her CO now, she continued to look out for her, just as she always had.

Jenny knew that it was because of this bond that she'd been able to get away guessing about the possibility of a pregnancy for Ziva and suggesting one to her. She also knew that the younger woman was in a relationship with someone, but because of who her friend was, Jenny respected Ziva's privacy and had long ago decided that she would tell her all of the details if or when she chose to.

She had a feeling that today was that day, but she certainly hadn't been expecting to see what she did when Ziva entered her office. Had she not already had coffee in her system, she would've thought she was hallucinating.

Not on was Ziva no longer bothering to hide her blossoming baby belly, but she also had two small children in her company.

"Ziva," Jenny said at length in a tone of surprise. "I would say 'good morning,' but that wouldn't be addressing the matter at hand. What's going on?"

"These are the children of the lieutenant that I mentioned, and they became mine in a rather unconventional way last night."

"Oh?"

"Their father abandoned them at my apartment last night after we broke up when I told him about this one, here."

Ziva subtly touched a hand to the swell in her middle as she sat in one of the chairs in front of her friend's desk. Realizing that Ziva was practically talking in code because the girls didn't know about the baby yet, Jenny sat on the edge of her desk, facing Ziva, and asked a new question.

"What are the kids' names?"

"In my lap is Alison Joy Constance. She turned six months old yesterday."

Alison Joy was preoccupied with concentrating on sitting up unassisted, but she looked up at the sound of her name. When Jenny greeted her, the little one turned to butter and giggled and fell back against her caretaker a little harder than she would have liked.

"Come now, Alush." Ziva massaged her middle as she rearranged Alison Joy so they were both comfortable. "You _really_ need to be gentle now. I _know_ that you can understand me."

Indeed, Alison Joy could because the next moment, she relaxed against Ziva, even going so far as to suck on one of her tiny thumbs as she watched the scene contently.

Jenny smiled and then gave a nod towards Ella Brave. "And who is this little beauty?"

Ziva looked at the toddler, who was now leaning against her and studying Jenny inquisitively. "Dear little friend, do you remember who that is? I showed you her picture this morning."

"B—"

"Ah-ah." Ziva scolded lightly. "No sheep noises."

Ella Brave was more clever than people gave her credit for, so she knew about the concept of last names and also what shepherds were. When Ziva told her what Jenny's last name was, she'd been waiting all morning to make that joke.

However, at the sound of Ziva correcting her, she gave a dramatic sigh, and, remembering an old lesson in politeness, she actually curtseyed to Jenny before pointing to herself.

"Me am Ella Brave Hope." she blew Jenny a kiss. "You prettyful."

Unable to keep a straight face for too much longer, Ella Brave scuttled over to the corner of Jenny's office and using an armchair as a stepping stool, she maneuvered herself onto the window seat and looked out, becoming absorbed in the scenery.

"She's quite a character." Jenny said in amusement.

"Indeed." agreed Ziva. "I brought her and her sister to come see you before I drop them off at their nanny's house because I wanted to make it stick, if that is the correct phrasing."

"It's _definitely_ the right phrasing, and it's _definitely_ sticking. And I suppose this is your way of saying that things are going to be different now?"

"Yes."

"Has anyone else met them yet?"

"Tony has, and Ella in particular adores him. I still am not sure how to tell McGee, Abby, Ducky, and Palmer about my situation. At least Gibbs knows about i—"

Ziva's words were interrupted by the office door opening abruptly and Gibbs himself entering, carrying two mugs of hot coffee, one in each hand.

"Leroy Jethro!" hissed Jenny as in front of her, Ziva jumped at the sound of the door, causing the baby in her arms and the baby in her belly to both protest in annoyance. "I _told_ you I was going to be having a meeting with Ziva! Do you not knock?"

Gibbs pretended to think about it. "Not always, no."

At that, Ziva had to refrain from snickering—watching interactions between Gibbs and Jenny always reminded her of her parents… back before Rivka died and Eli had changed, back when everything had still been good, warm, and wonderful… back when Ziva had been _truly_ innocent.

Gibbs turned to Ziva, first surveying her distended middle, then the children as he handed Jenny one of the coffee mugs as he set on the edge of the desk with her.

"Did you become a mother sooner than you thought, David?" he asked as he and Jenny looked at her over the edge of their drinking mugs.

"Yes, I did. Ella Brave is at the window and I am holding Alison Joy."

"Where are their parents?"

"Their mother died by her own hand when Alison was almost two months old, but as for their father's current whereabouts, I legitimately do not know. He abandoned us yesterday, and the girls are in my guardianship now. I am slightly worried, though, because he is a Marine lieutenant."

"We'll all take care of you and the kids if anything does happen." Gibbs promised as Jenny immediately nodded in agreement.

Ziva smiled and breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much. I do not know what I would do without the children if they were taken from me. I already know that I would do anything for them."

Gibbs gave her a fond smile, thinking briefly of his own daughter, and how he missed her every single day. "Does any of this have to do with why DiNozzo is out in the waiting area?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes. He met the girls last night, and he also knows that they are getting a sibling."

"Has he offered to go look for the girls' father yet?"

"In addition to volunteering to help with anything else, especially food-related requests, yes again."

"Alright, then." said Gibbs in a tone of approval. "He's a good man."

As if reading her old mentor's mind, Jenny tacked on, "And if he ever steps one toe out of line, you tell us, and we'll set him straight."

Ziva suddenly felt incredibly loved. "Thank you, and I will be sure yo keep you two apprised, should the situation arise."

Gibbs checked the time on his watch. "Are you going to bring the kids to a sitter, or something, before work starts?"

"Yes." she looked over at Jenny. "I have actually said everything that I wanted to. Will you help me up?"

Jenny did so, and when Ziva was upright and had her balance back in check, she called out to Ella Brave.

"Come, come, baby dove. It is time to bring you and your sister to Bronwyn's house now."

Ella Brave quite liked Nanny Bronwyn, so she was quite powerless to resist Ziva when she heard that.

After Ziva promised to be back in time for the beginning of her shift, Gibbs and Jenny opened the door for her, only to find a strange sight: Jenny's secretary was looking like she was trying to blend into the furniture, and Tony was looking sheepish.

"Ziva! Gibbs! Director!" he laughed nervously. "For the record, I couldn't keep them away, and they somehow figured out all by themselves that we were up here!"

McGee, Abby, Ducky, and Palmer had joined them.

"Well, it was just a process of eliminati—oof!"

McGee elbowed the medical examiner's assistant in the gut to shut him up as Ducky muttered to him, "I _thought_ we agreed that _mum_ is the word, Mister Palmer!"

Ignoring them, Abby stepped forward and queried, "Ziva, have you had a family this whole time and not told us? Is that what's happening?"

"Not entirely, no," was the response before Ziva found herself explaining her situation for what she hoped would be the last time for awhile.

Curious about Abby because of how she stood out from the others literally from head to toe, Ella Brave introduced herself to her, even throwing in the 'prettyful' comment before hugging the goth around her black fish-netted legs.

Abby turned to mush and picked her up, hugging her. Ella Brave melted into the embrace.

"You are _way_ prettyful." the little girl informed her as she ran her little fingers over Abby's neck tattoo and spiked collar. _"Way_ prettyful."

"And so you are _you,_ Ella Brave." Abby tapped her playfully on the nose and gave her another hug. "I'd have _so_ much fun with you."

Ella Brave turned to Ziva. "I can stay?"

Ziva shook her head. "Not today, baby dove, but Abby can walk with us to the elevator. Come on."

Ella Brave became sad about saying farewell to Abby so soon, but when she found out that Tony would be tagging along for daycare drop-off, she happily changed her tune.

When they finished that, McGee called, informing them of a fresh body recovered from the park and that they should head straight to the morgue upon return.

Just before they headed back into the NCIS building, though, Ziva stopped in her tracks all of a sudden and put her hands on her middle, rubbing soothing circles on it as she felt her daughter squirm inside her.

"What is it?" Tony asked.

"I suddenly just got the strangest feeling, as though something odd is about to happen, and the baby is reacting."

"Well, it _is_ Tuesday, and we both know what Probie _always_ brings for lunch on Tuesdays."

Just the thought made Ziva shudder in disgust. "Something with tofu."

"That is most _definitely_ odd." Tony opened the door for his partner and instinctively put a hand on the small of her back as she passed by, softly breathing a sigh of relief when she didn't swat him away. "Also, you need to think of some kind of nickname for the baby now."

"I do?" Ziva asked as they walked over to the elevators and Tony pressed the down button on the nearest elevator button panel. "Why?"

"You already call Ella 'baby dove,' and when we dropped her and Alison off, I head you call Alison 'Little Porcupine.' By the way, I'm proud you can say it the right way because it used to be 'porcuswine,' as I recall."

Ziva punched him lightly in the arm. "I have been calling Alison that for as long as I have known her because whenever she wakes up, her hair sticks up like porcupine spikes. I also call her 'Alush' because though it is complicated to explain, from Hebrew to English, it translates to something like sweetheart. My mother used to call me motek before she died, and that is a way to say 'sweetie.' When she would say it, it sounded so beautiful."

Very surprised that Ziva was opening up about her childhood in Israel and also educating him on Hebrew terms of endearment, Tony decided not to break the spell and asked her, "Did your father ever call you anything like that?"

"He would call me chickpea."

Tony tugged playfully at his shirt collar, like he was pretending to suffocate from the cute. "And I rest my case. We can't have kid number three left out."

"I love that you said 'we' just now." she stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you so much."

By now, they had since boarded the lift, but it was already opening up at one of the lowest levels of the building, where the morgue was. When they disembarked, Tony felt flummoxed both by the kiss, as quick as it had been, and also because the word Ziva had zeroed in on, as it just slipped out.

Deciding to save him before he made a complete ass of himself at their destination, Ziva said something else.

"I like Ladybug because she is very wavy like one."

Ziva's gaffe seemed to get Tony to snap out of it. "I think you mean _wiggly,_ but that's a totally cool reason, which means that until she gets a proper name, the baby will be known as Ladybug."

The pair continued to chat lightly with each other until they reached the morgue.

To Ziva, that feeling she'd felt outside had returned, and once more, she couldn't figure out why.

In return from saving him from tripping over his own words, Tony spoke to Ducky when they entered.

"So, who do we have on the slab today, doc?"

Ducky beckoned to his friends towards the table. "We don't quite yet know because he had no ID on him, and get this—his fingerprint whirls, the very natural formation with which every human being on the planet can be identified, are gone."

There was a beat of silence in which Tony cringed and automatically rubbed his own fingertips, and then, "I beg your pardon? I've seen enough spy movies to know that achieving a feat like becoming _fingerprintless_ can only happen by burning your fingertips in a very strategic way."

"I'm still trying to wrap my mind around it myself, Anthony, but luckily for us, it happened recently enough that some of the chemical residue from the chemical agent used in the burning was left behind." Ducky was trying his best to sound optimistic even though the other two could see that he was puzzled. "Mister Palmer is bringing a sample to Abby, so hopefully that will point us in the direction of identifying him, because burnt fingertips and two gunshot wounds aren't bad enough, the poor fellow."

"He is not poor." Ziva said suddenly, feeling very angry. "I know that that is just an expression, but do _not_ call him that. I know him, and he is not deserving of that word."

"We won't call him that, Ziva." Ducky promised. "Where are do you recognize him from? What's his name?"

"That is Lieutenant Miles Kristoff Shockley. He fathered Ella, Alison, and the child that I am carrying now."

That was all Ziva said on the matter because the next thing she knew, she made a quick dash for the sink in the corner and was vomiting into it.

This was going to be a long case.


	3. Recouperating

After Ziva completely recovered from vomiting, her thoughts shifted to her kids.

While her youngest was with her, literally 24/7, she desperately wanted to see Ella Brave and Alison Joy so she could kiss and cuddle them. Obviously, Alison Joy was too young to understand what was happening, but Ziva knew that Ella Brave did, and while the little girl hadn't gotten along well with Miles, she still deserved to know that he was gone.

But how was she to explain the _murder_ aspect? Growing up where she had and how she had and then going on to join both the army and The Mossad, murder, mayhem, and violence were the norm for Ziva, all the way up until she left Israel to chase Ari.

Ella Brave was quite normal, and although she'd already experienced the loss of one parent less than six months ago, she seemed to have already moved on. What was she going to say about this latest loss?

And when Ziva felt the daughter in her womb stretch and wiggle, she realized with a jolt that the little one would never know her own father. Ziva had always imagined that she would be married, or at least living with the father of her child, but alas, she was neither of those things now.

At least Tony had been a very big help so far.

Tony…

No, Ziva! she scolded herself sharply. Do _not_ go down that road!

"Ziva?"

The brunette snapped out of her dream-state to see first see that she up in the briefing room yet, having been sent there by Gibbs to collect herself, and then to see that Jenny was watching in the doorway.

"Director!" Ziva said, genuinely surprised to see her because she'd been expecting anyone else. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on you because I heard that you were up here. I also want to talk about what happened… if you feel ready."

"I am, yes." nodded Ziva, waving her over and motioning for her to join her at the table. "If I may, though—why is it that _you_ are here, and not one of the others?"

Jenny crossed the room and sat next to Ziva, at the head of the table. "Abby, Ducky, and Palmer are already busy, trying to figure out why the lieutenant's fingerprints were burned off, and Jethro has Tony and McGee reconstructing Shockley's last twenty-four hours."

"What of Jethro, himself?"

"He _was_ going to talk to you, but I talked him out of it because I've known you longer, and because I thought it might be easier to talk to be easier to talk to another woman."

Ziva offered Jenny a small smile. "You are not wrong. Are you talking to me as my senior-most commander, or as my friend?"

"Both, but it _is_ okay to be upset or cry, if you feel the need."

"We shall see about that. What is your first question?"

"How are you doing? I heard about what happened in autopsy."

"I am no longer feeling sick at all. Just a bit hungry." Ziva rubbed her baby bump as the baby stretched out, restless. "I am sad that Miles is dead because mourning the death of someone that you've been intimate with is normal, yes?"

"Very."

"It is just a little different _this_ time around because I am carrying one of his children. I just wish that I had had a chance to tell him that I loved him."

"You hadn't said it yet?"

"No. It was headed there, but this is also the first romantic relationship I have ever been in where my partner had children."

"So you had to get used to that, too. I can see your frame of mind now."

"I would have never given myself to Miles as I have if that had not even been in the realm of possibility, though." Ziva sighed shakily and leaned back in her seat. "I know that you are asking these questions because you must, but unless I was genuinely afraid for my life or someone else's, I would never _intentionally_ raise a hand in a threatening way to a friend or someone I am in a relationship with."

"I believe it."

"And I did _not_ do this—I am putting that on the table now."

"I believe you, Ziva, and so does everyone in this building. Thank you for being so honest." Jenny patted her hand affectionately. "What time did your family, for lack of a better word, come over to see you?"

Ziva thought about it. "I got home from work at six-thirty, and I remember thinking that that was just enough time to change into something comfortable to wear and make something to eat before Jeopardy started at seven. Miles arrived with Ella and Alison just before eight."

"How do you remember that?"

"Wheel Of Fortune was on right after, and when I can, I like to watch them together. The doorbell rang just as Jeopardy was ending, so I turned off the television off and answered the door."

"Were you expecting company at all?"

"No, so I have no idea what Miles wanted to talk about, although now that I think about it, it was probably to do with how he died. We did not get a chance to discuss that at all."

"Why's that?"

"I let them in because they are my family, but they were there for a maximum of twenty minutes before Alison soiled her diaper so bad that she leaked on me."

The bridge of Jenny's nose wrinkled slightly, but otherwise, she said nothing about that unfortunate incident. "What happened after that? Where was Ella?"

"She was asleep on the couch because it was past her bedtime, as it was. I had already decided to tell Miles about the baby, but the mess with Alison happened before I had a chance to do it properly. Shall I tell you how that occurred? It was not pretty."

"Please tell me."

Ziva took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Miles was cleaning Alison up, and I was in my bedroom, changing."

"Into clean clothes?"

"Precisely. I had just changed into clean clothes when the baby started moving—she does that now—so I sat on my bed to feel her, and that was when Miles walked in with Alison because she was clean again."

"Did he see your bump and start putting the pieces together?"

"Yes, and that was when he grew unreasonably angry." Ziva shuddered at the memory. "He did not hit me, but I am quite certain he would have, had Ella and Alison been elsewhere."

"And how long between _that_ drama and him leaving your apartment?"

"Ten minutes, at most. He woke Ella in the process of the fight, and it took over an hour to calm her and Alison after that."

"I can't say I blame them." Jenny sympathized. "When did Tony show up?"

"Close to ten, just after the girls calmed and he…"

Ziva's words faltered as a sudden blush creeped onto her face.

"What is it? Don't quit now."

"Nothing _happened,_ but I asked him to come over because I wanted his company. Plus, he is my best friend and _very_ protective of me. That, and he was was already at the grocery store…"

She paused a again, searching for something that she'd forgotten.

"What is the term when you buy or make a person's favorite things to cheer them up?"

"You're thinking of the term 'care package.' Are you saying that Tony made you a care package and then surprised you with it right after that?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes, and he ended up staying the night."

"And then you didn't separate until you got here this morning?"

"Only briefly, when I brought Ella and Alison to see you, but not _entirely_ until I recognized Miles."

"And now we've come full circle." Jenny observed.

"Is there anything else?"

"Will you be able to remain objective throughout this case?"

"Absolutely."

"Then I see no reason why you can't rejoin the team." Jenny said with a wink.

Ziva smiled, thankful. "I want to find out who killed Miles and why so that I can bury him and move on, especially where the children are concerned, and speaking of them, I cannot in good conscience, let any of them be separated."

"Because Ella and Alison only have you now, and the baby is their sister."

Ziva nodded again. "Do you know anyone who can help me keep Ella and Alison, perhaps adopt them?"

Recalling what Ziva had said earlier about finding adoption papers, Jenny nodded. "Mhm, and I can look into it for you in a few minutes because I know a judge in Family Court who is very sympathetic and will recognize your case as emergency circumstances."

"Thank you so very much." Ziva said sincerely.

"You're very welcome." Jenny stood and pulled Ziva to her feet. "Come on—I'll see you to the stairs."

* * *

When Ziva was back in the bullpen, she was just getting comfortable at her desk when Gibbs, Tony, and McGee immediately dropped what they were doing and powwowed around her.

"How are you?" Tony asked. "Not in trouble, or anything?"

"No, nothing of the sort. The director just wanted my complete account of things, and I have told her everything. She has cleared me to work the case, and she is also going to look into adopting Ella Brave and Alison Joy."

"Awesome!" McGee chirped in complete sincerity.

Tony immediately swatted McGee on the back of the head and turned to him, exasperated. "Seriously, McDork?! Ziva tells us a bunch of great things, and _'awesome'_ is the best you've got?!"

"I—"

McGee's response was cut off by Gibbs giving Tony a head swat.

Tony immediately stepped out of the older man's reach."Okay, what was that one for, boss?"

"As a reminder to track down Shockely's captain, and also for hitting Ziva's errand monkey." Gibbs physically steered his underling around and gave him a shove in the direction of his own desk. "Don't talk to us until you've gotten him to agree to come here."

Tony literally bowed himself out of the gathering.

 _"What,"_ Ziva said to the other two. "Is an _'errand monkey',_ and is it a _good_ thing?"

"That's _your_ department." said Gibbs to McGee before walking away.

Ziva zeroed in on McGee and arched an eyebrow expectantly.

"Basically, it means that from now until you go on maternity leave," McGee begain quickly. "While you're at work, tell me when you're hungry and what you want; _anything_ you want, I'll make it happen."

 _"Anything?"_ Ziva probed, wanting to make sure she'd heard right.

"Anythi—drat. I know that look in your eyes…"

Ziva was now sporting the look she wore whenever she participated in a prank with Tony. This resulted in her composing what she was craving at that exact moment on a piece of paper before handing it to McGee.

"This is _extremely_ specific!" he cried when he finally read it. "I—"

His protest was derailed by a paper ball hitting him in the back of the head.

"That was from boss, wasn't it?" he asked Ziva without taking his eyes off her.

"Yes. Yes, it was."

Called Gibbs, "Do your _job,_ errand monkey!"

McGee promised he would before speaking to Ziva again. "Is there anything else that you need?"

"Thank you for everything, McGee, and not at the moment, no."

"Then I will see you when I get back!"

When he left and Ziva was alone at her desk again, she looked down at the swell in her middle, grinning as she felt her daughter move around.

"Well, sweet Ladybug," Ziva gently glided her hands over where she was feeling the most movement. "Things are going to be crazy for awhile, but I can promise you that _everyone_ loves you and your sisters as dearly as I do."

The baby moved in response to the sound of her mother's voice, but then she did something that made her mother jump.

It wasn't a kick, but still just as magical.

"Oh, is that one of your little _hands_ I am feeling?"

Ziva asked this of her daughter in a hushed whisper and then she beamed even more when she felt the impression of a tiny hand against her palm, clear as day.

"Hello, Ladybug! I am so happy to meet you!"

Unbeknownst to Ziva, Tony was watching her fondly from across the bullpen, having nothing better to do while he was on hold over the telephone. He hadn't been expecting to catch his best friend doing something like that, but Now that he had, he felt his heart melting completely because in that moment, he finally admitted something to himself that he'd been trying to deny for over a year.

He, Anthony Dashiell DiNozzo Junior, was one hundred percent in love with Ziva David.


	4. Speaking A Dead Language

"Here you go, Ziva—one breakfast sandwich from the Beltway Burger, two cartons of apple juice, a plastic knife, and… a jar of _Nutella."_

"Why, thank you, Tim." Ziva said sweetly as her friend arranged everything for her on her desk. "Ladybug and I are very appreciative."

"Don't worry about paying me back, ei—so _that's_ what you wanted the Nutella for?"

"Indeed, and it is not a bad combination at all."

Ziva had taken her sandwich apart, and using the plastic knife, she spread a layer of the chocolatey hazelnut substance on the top layer of the inside of her food and put it back together before taking a bite to find out that she quite liked it.

"Really?" McGee asked. "A breakfast sandwich with _Nutella_ tastes _good?"_

He wrinkled his nose, and when Ziva saw that, she deadpanned, "No uterus, no opinion."

From the other side of the bullpen, Tony called out, "Walk away, Probie! Quickly!"

Tony had yet to be subjected to Ziva melting down because of her yo-yoing pregnancy hormones, but in the spirit of good friendship, he had already decided to steer McGee clear of situations where such an outcome could occur. But only every once in awhile.

However, McGee only took one step before Gibbs came back into the bullpen, a fresh cup of coffee in hand.

"The only place any of you better be going is towards the big screen to tell me about Shockley's last twenty-four hours!"

The others hurried over to join him and as McGee quickly got everything set up, Gibbs turned to Tony.

"Track down Shockley's CO yet, DiNozzo?"

Tony bobbed his head in confirmation. "Yes, boss. His name is Captain Cormac Murphy of the USS Yorktown, which is actually docked right now."

Ziva wheeled around to face Tony. "Did you say Captain _Murphy_ of the _Yorktown?"_

"Uh-huh. Do you know him?"

"Sort of—Miles introduced me to him last week at an event on the Yorktown."

The other two looked over and with an arched eyebrow, Gibbs asked, "Anything else you want to share, David?"

Recognizing a jibe when she heard one, Ziva protested, "I have a lot on my plate in the last day-and-a-half, so I truly forgot until just now, but as I recall, he did not look pleased to hear that I was Miles' date."

Gibbs, McGee, and Tony were now hanging on to every word, so Ziva had no choice but to continue.

"I think he was displeased that I was dating his 'right hand man,' as he put it, so soon after Miles' wife died. However, Miles _did_ tell me that by the time that Moira _was_ gone, they were complete strangers to each other, and I have never had a reason to doubt him on that. I also got an impression when I was talking to Murphy that he does not like women."

"How do you think it would go if he saw you while we sit him down for questioning?"

"Not well. If he saw me, he probably would not say much."

"Then we will make sure that your paths don't cross just yet." Gibbs turned to McGee. "What do you got?"

McGee cleared his throat and pressed a button on the remote in his hand, pointing it at the monitor. Miles' formal picture of him in his uniform appeared.

"This is Lieutenant Miles Kristoff Shockley of the USS Yorktown, aged thirty-two. As we know, he became a widower when his wife committed suicide, and we also know that he has three daughters, including the one that Ziva is carrying. Other than that, though, there is no other family."

"Does he at least have a friend, or someone we can talk to about him?"

McGee pressed the button on his remote again and they were rewarded with the driver's license photo of a new person who immediately struck Ziva as 'mindnumbingly ordinary.'

"Everyone, this is Liam O'Riley. He's thirty-four, and is even local. Bonus points—he's known Shockley for five years now."

"Then why is it that I have never heard of him until now, I wonder?" Ziva mused, feeling like she'd been left out of a loop. "What does he do for a living, McGee?"

"According to what I was able to dig up, he's a federal employee just like us, but of a different variety—Liam O'Riley is a postal worker."

Tony opened his mouth to say something about that, but Ziva shot daggers at him with her eyes. "No stupid jokes, okay?"

"Okay, okay." Tony changed tracks and spoke to Gibbs. "Boss, Shockley's CO should be here soon, and since we've already deduced that it would be bad if he saw Ziva, I was thinking that she and I should go do something like go to Shockley's apartment and maybe also talk to his neighbors."

"Not a bad idea, DiNozzo. You two go ahead and go."

Tony and Ziva grabbed their gear quickly and headed for the elevator.

"What about me?" asked McGee.

Gibbs clapped him on the shoulder. "After you track O'Riley down and get him to come here, you can question him solo."

McGee just gulped and glanced over at Tony and Ziva, hoping for some kind of reassurance, only to see that they were pulling faces at him behind Gibbs' back. Gibbs looked in the direction McGee was looking only to see Tony and Ziva just disappearing onto the elevator and the doors closing.

"What are you still standing there for?" Gibbs asked when he looked back and saw that McGee hadn't moved.

"Right." McGee said, heading back to his desk. "Tracking down Liam O'Riley."

"Good man." Gibbs told him as he headed back to his own desk. "Good man."

* * *

Almost an hour later saw Ziva and Tony just getting to Miles Shockley's apartment in his building, and Tony was grumbling.

"You could have said that Miles lived in a 'don't ask, don't tell' kind of neighborhood!"

Ziva pretended to play dumb. "So that is the phrase—I could not think of it."

"Yeah, well, either way, you could have warned me that Missus Bianchi is kind of special!"

"If by that you mean 'deaf as a pole,' then I could not resist."

"It's actually 'deaf as a _post,'_ and you also didn't have to string me along _that_ far before 'suddenly' revealing that you speak Italian _and_ Sign Language!"

"But I was having fun!" Ziva pouted.

Tony sighed heavily and hung his head, knowing that if he looked at Ziva at that particular moment, all he would see would be her puppy eyes, and now that she was pregnant, her direct gaze was his new Kryptonite.

Pointing at the door in front of him, he asked, "This is his place, right?"

Ziva nodded as she pulled a set of keys from her pocket, selected one and used it to open the door. "Yes, but when Miles was away, especially out at sea on the Yorktown, I would live here to look after the children, but _only_ then, so my things are here, too."

Tony finally looked Ziva in the eyes. "Is that a subtle way of saying that if I make fun of your stuff, you'll shoot me?"

"Shoot you? No. Break a finger or two? Probably."

Tony immediately stuffed his hands in his pockets, and in seeing that, Ziva tacked on an afterthought.

"I won't shoot you for being annoying because finger-breaking is more satisfactory, yes," (Tony was thrown by that until he saw the glint in his partner's eyes that let him now she was playing with him) "And besides, my friend, the girls and I all need you too much."

And for the second time in one morning, Ziva had left Tony speechless to the point where he found himself staring after her in wonder.

When he finally did catch up to Ziva, he found her standing in the front room of a modest apartment that definitely looked home to a family with small children. A year ago, when he was first getting to know Ziva, he could not have imagined her in this kind of setting, let alone as a mother, but now that she'd shown all of them about this new part of her life, it seemed natural. Before Tony could start daydreaming about a proper family life with Ziva and her daughters, though, he noticed that the woman in question was beckoning to him.

"Come this way, Tony." she called. "If we are to find anything suspicious about Miles, it will probably be in his office."

"His office?" Tony echoed, following out of the living room and down the hallway. "Why does a mostly-seafaring lieutenant need an office?"

"I do not know. The room is off-limits to the children, and it is enough of a project keeping Ella Brave out, so I have never bothered going inside."

"There's a first time for everything, I guess."

By now, they were at the office door and since it was closed, Tony opened it and motioned for his partner to go ahead of him.

"After you, Z."

Miles Shockley's office was a bit ordinary. It had a desk set-up, complete with both a desktop computer and a laptop, and even a printer and a paper shredder. Off to the right, by a window, there was a comfortable armchair set up in front of a big plasma tv, which in turn was hooked up to a gaming console of some kind. There was also a stack of DVDs and video games on a small table next to the chair. Some of the DVDs were even x-rated. The room was a bit of a man cave.

"Huh." Ziva said after a few moments. "I do not know what I was expecting, but this was not it. This feels like a scene from a spy movie just before something is to go zigzag."

"That'd be _sideways,_ but yeah, I totally know what you mean. Come on."

They proceeded to investigate the top of the desk, and all of the papers on it.

"There are a lot of bills here." Tony remarked. "A lot of them are saying 'past due' and 'final notice.' Does this mean anything to you?"

Ziva sighed and shook her head. "No, but then again, we were still at a point where we had separate lives from each other."

"Even though his kids imprinted on you?"

"Even then. I was seriously going to tell him this week that I was in love with him, but I did not get a chance because we were both busy, and then I found out about Ladybug." Ziva gave her bump a rub, smiling a little briefly when she felt her daughter stretch out in reaction to her touch. "Miles was a bit private, anyway, so it really does not surprise me that he'd leave me out of the loop called financial debt."

Tony cringed as he examined the contents of a folder he'd just came across. "Then this will add insult to injury—I found receipts and other kinds of records from a recent trip to Atlantic City. It looks like he stayed at a casino there and racked up the kind of debt that would have the wrong sort of people come looking for him."

Ziva briefly pinched the bridge of her nose. "He was gone all weekend, yes? And he never left, except to come back home?"

"Yes."

"I was _here_ last weekend, Friday afternoon through Sunday night, being the girls' mother, and Miles told me that he was taking his trip for something related to work, and that he was going to _New York!_ He also told me that should anything happen while he was gone—then, or at any other time—that he wanted me to be the girls' legal guardian and make important decisions on their behalf!"

"And that didn't strike you as weird?"

"Not at that time, no. I took it as a sign of enormous trust, and the documents are probably still here somewhere because he didn't get to filing them yet… here we go."

In all of the clutter on Miles' desk, Ziva had somehow managed to find the papers she'd been talking about, and when Tony examined them to find that they were legitimate legal documents pertaining exactly to what Ziva had just described.

"Hey," he said when he got to the bottom of the stack. "This is for you."

He handed her a sealed envelope with her name on it. Ziva took the envelope, although she had a foreboding feeling about it. Thanking him, she left the room to read it in private.

Just when Tony finished inspecting the office for anything else that would be important (and also to see exactly which DVDs were on display), he heard Ziva call out to him from wherever she'd gone to.

"Tony, will you please come here?"

He found her in a nursery-type room, standing between Ella Brave's bed and Alison Joy's crib, near to tears. Tony wanted to hug Ziva, but he had a feeling that if he did, she would kick him where it counted, so instead, he approached her with caution. Seeing Ziva sad always made Tony want to do anything he could to fix it.

"What is it?" he asked her.

She brandished an evidence bag at him that contained a letter that had been inside the envelope. "Miles left me a message, and now I know that _everything_ we had, expect for Ella and Alison, was all just a _lie!_ Go on and read this!"

Tony took the bad and read the letter. It was not cheerful.

 _Ziva,_

 _If you're reading this, then it means that I got away, and I'm not coming back. There's nothing in D.C. for me anymore, now that Moira is gone—even the Marines doesn't feel worth it. I'm dying here._

 _So… I'm starting over completely. I won't tell you where I'm going, but only that I need a passport and a lot of money to get there. I'm almost in the process of acquiring both now._

 _I know that you're married to your work, so I won't ask you to leave NCIS and come with me, but I'm asking you something else—take the girls, adopt them, love them, be their parent the way that Moira and I couldn't. They deserve better than what Moira was and I have been. To be truthful, neither of us wanted children, but we couldn't give them up for adoption because people would talk. The girls have no idea._

 _Ella and Alison love you very much, and they miss you when you aren't here, anyway._

 _Call me a selfish bastard or a deserter if you want because I know I deserve it, but don't split the girls up if you don't keep them. Above all else, don't look for me because I won't answer._

 _—Miles_

Tony looked over at Ziva to see that she had started crying now, and with one hand, she was wiping at her tears while with the other, she was winding the control on the mobile attached to the crib. When it had been completely wound up, Ziva let go and 'All The Pretty Little Horses' began to play. For just a moment, Ziva looked lost in her own little world.

When she turned to Tony, though, she looked heartbroken. Something told Tony that not even Gibbs or the director saw her like this, and she loved them like parents.

"All this time, and I was just a means to an end. Never have I felt so used before."

She reached into the crib and pulled out one of Alison Joy's blankets. Tony watched in fascination as his partner inhaled the scent of the blanket, again getting lost in her own world for a second before putting the blanket back in the crib and turning to him again.

"I love Ella, Alison, and Ladybug even _more_ now, though."

"How can I help you right now? Do you need a chair, or something?"

"No, but that is very sweet. Thank you."

Ziva began rocking her hips from side-to-side as she felt the baby wiggle restlessly.

"I am now a pregnant single mother, and I am not even _thirty!"_ she exclaimed. "I am _alone;_ who is going to want me like _this?"_

Tony desperately wanted to say that he already did, but something that she'd said had caught his attention.

As much as he adored Ziva and cared for her and about her, she was an enigma, and part of that was because he had never gotten around to figuring out how old she was.

"How old _are_ you, Ziva?"

She immediately flushed red. "I just turned twenty-four last week, but I do not like to talk about how old I am all that often."

Only because he didn't know what else to do just then, Tony let out an appreciative, long single-noted whistle.

"Wow—you had me fooled!"

Tony's bamboozled state immediately lifted Ziva's mood and the familiar playful expression returned to her face. "How old are _you?_ I promise not to tell."

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, suddenly feeling very on the spot. "Thirty-six, but who's counting?"

"I had you fooled?"

"Yeah, you did, and I have to say that I am very impressed."

Ziva gave him a mocked curtsy. "I am younger than McGee and Palmer; this does not change anything?"

"Not at all. I like you just the way you are."

She gave him a genuine smile and said, "Thank you, Anthony," before exiting the nursery.

When he was alone, a sudden look of realization hit him, and if it was possible, he would have had heart eyes.

"She called me Anthony." he said softly to the empty room. "Wow."

Ziva's voice cut through his thoughts as she called to him from another part of the apartment. "Tony, what are you still doing in the nursery? I have just thought of someone we need to go pay a visit to!"

Tony looked around the nursery, and for a brief moment, he envisioned a scene in a bigger nursery where he was reading a story to Ella Brave and Alison Joy while Ziva sat nearby in a rocking chair, listening while she fed Ladybug.

Not until that very moment did Tony realize how badly he wanted a family… and who he wanted one with. It wouldn't feel right with anyone else.

And then he remembered that she was waiting.

"Okay, Z! Don't leave without me!"

Tony left the nursery quickly.


	5. Bronwyn's Breakthrough

"Okay, Ziva, who are we going to see now? You still haven't said it yet."

Tony and Ziva had been quiet since leaving the apartment, and were now riding along in Ziva's car. What was getting to Tony was how peacefully the ride was going so far because normally, Ziva drove with the speed limit (and slight recklessness) of a race car driver. At the moment, she was driving like a normal person, and to Tony, that was clearly a sign that Ziva was cooking something up. The question was, what was it?

"We are going to visit Bronwyn."

Tony laughed nervously. "Oh, boy. _This_ will be fun."

Bronwyn Llewellyn was Ella Brave's and Alison Joy's nanny, and she had been for their entire lives to date. She was a few years older than Ziva and while not quite Tony's type, was incredibly attractive. Bronwyn was even married with two little girls, but she also happened to hail from Wales and had had a very heavy Welsh accent that, even during the brief time Tony had met her that morning, he had a hard time deciphering. Ziva, linguist that she was, had no trouble understanding Bronwyn at all, though Tony suspected that it was because neither woman were from the states and also because they'd been friends for some time now.

What made Tony squirrelly about Bronwyn was that she had the kind of gaze that made it look like she was looking through you, but in a very spooky way. Ziva had also told Bronwyn about Tony on a previous occasion because the first thing Bronwyn did after the initial introductions was turn to Ziva and say, "I get it now!" to which Ziva had nodded approvingly. Neither of them would tell Tony what 'it' was.

"Tony, you _have_ to relax now." Ziva told them as they arrived on Bronwyn's street and in the direction of her house. "If you do not, Bronwyn will get inside your head faster than I do."

Bronwyn Llewellyn also gave off the vibe that if you got to know her well, she could mess with you very easily. Ziva was just like that, but Tony could usually catch her.

"Come on, Tony." Ziva patted her partner's cheek affectionately. "We are here."

Tony came out of his head long enough to see that they were now parked in front of Bronwyn's house. In an act of chivalry that they would just keep between themselves, Tony proceeded to exit the car first and hold Ziva's door open for her.

He even let her do the talking.

"Ziva! Tony!" Bronwyn said in surprise when she opened the door. "What's going on?"

"May we please talk inside, Bronwyn?" Ziva asked. "We would not bother you while the children were here if it was not important."

"Sure!" Bronwyn opened the door wider and stood to the side. "Is this about Miles?"

Before Ziva or Tony could ask her why she'd ask that, excited squeals from Ella Brave and Alison Joy could be heard. Both girls were in the living room, playing with each other, and when they saw the newcomers, Ella Brave made a beeline for Tony, who responded by picking her up and hugging her. Alison Joy was on a blanket, surrounded by toys and propped up with a support pillow, but the second she saw Ziva, she reached for her, using her hands to imitate grabbing motions.

Unable to resist, but telling herself that such an act would soon be harder to do, Ziva picked the baby up and held her on her hip. She even felt her heart flutter a little as Alison Joy leaned close and held on tightly to her shirt.

When Ziva looked over at her partner, she saw that he was having that kind of moment with Ella Brave, and she wondered if Tony had ever had any kind of desire to be a father.

It was his voice that cut through her thoughts, although he was talking to Ella Brave.

"Ziva and I came to see you and Alison, but we also have to talk to Bronwyn, too, and it's _really_ important."

The little girl sighed theatrically. "You will come home tonight?"

Tony bit back a laugh, but only because it would ruin the moment—Ella Brave had been hanging around Ziva so much that she was now beginning to mimic her speech patterns.

"We'll see, kid," Tony kissed Ella Brave's fingers before setting her on the floor. "But if you go play somewhere now, I promise that Ziva and I will come say goodbye before we go."

Ella Brave happily accepted those terms and headed out of the room.

Bronwyn motioned for her friends to come sit on the couch there in the living room, and she made to take Alison Joy back from Ziva, but the baby wouldn't have it, so Bronwyn just let her be before finally settling on to the couch, herself.

"What's happening?" she asked. "Is this about Miles?"

Ziva nodded, even relaxing when she felt Alison Joy turn completely calm in her hold. "That is the second time you have asked about him already; have you seen him recently?"

"Only yesterday, when he dropped the girls off in the morning and then picked them up in the evening, a bit shy of six." Bronwyn said after thinking for a moment. "I'm just concerned because he seemed a bit dodgy."

Ziva leaned over to Tony. "Dodgy means—"

"I _know_ what dodgy means, thank you, Ziva."

Bronwyn snickered as she watched the pair interact. "I wonder if you two were married in another life, or something."

Ziva promptly turned red as Tony cleared his throat in a pointed manner, getting things back on track.

"What Miles appear nervous about?" he asked.

"I don't know, but the last time I saw him like that was at Moira's funeral."

"Oh?"

"He was a bit scattered as it was because he'd just been made a widower and a single father enlisted in The Marines, to boot… huh…"

"What is it?" Tony and Ziva asked in unison.

Bronwyn sat back and steepled her fingers as she recalled the memory. "Well, I've just remembered that at the funeral, one of Miles' friends wanted to talk to him about something. I didn't ask and Miles didn't tell, so I looked after the children, but I remember thinking that it was very odd."

Queried Ziva, "Any particular reason why?"

"The way his friend spoked to him, it sounded like they had business of some sort to conduct. A deal of some kind, but like I said, Miles didn't tell me, so this is just me hazarding a guess."

"This is all very good, though, Bronwyn. Do you remember the friend's name at all?"

"It was very, very Irish—I remember that much."

Realizing where Ziva was going, Tony drove the question home. "Could it be Liam O'Riley, perchance?"

Bronwyn brightened. "Yes! May I ask a question, though?"

"Alright."

"Why are you two here, asking me about Miles? Is he in some kind of trouble? We're friends, but not extremely close."

"Bronwyn, Miles is dead." Ziva said softly. "He was shot, and we are still trying to figure out the exact sequence of events."

The smile slid off Bronwyn's face and she immediately made the sign of the cross. "Oh, my God; that's horrible! I take it Ella doesn't know yet?"

"She does not, but I will tell her tonight."

"Then I won't say a thing. I am so sorry, though, Ziva."

"Thank you."

"Is there anything else I can do to help?"

"You have actually been a great help to us already." Ziva told her. "Thank you."

Ziva looked down at Alison Joy, unsurprised to find that she was dozing in her arms and trying to stay awake; the little one had always found her friend very comfortable. What she wouldn't give to keep holding her and rocking her to sleep.

"Here you go, my friend." Ziva eased the baby into Bronwyn's arms. "And thank you for talking to us."

"Of course."

Tony handed Bronwyn his business card. "I'm sure you have Ziva's number, but here's mine, just in case you think of something else."

Bronwyn pocketed the card and then watched Tony get to his feet and help Ziva to hers. It didn't escape her notice that Ziva almost teetered back when she stood, or that Tony was quick to catch and steady her. That made Bronwyn curious immediately, but the second she saw Ziva touch a hand to her somewhat rounded midsection, she smiled fondly.

"Ziva?"

The young woman turned to her. "Yes?"

Bronwyn gave a nod towards her friend's middle. "Congratulations; do the children know yet?"

Ziva beamed at her friends' congratulatory words. "They do not know yet that they are getting a sister, but I plan on sharing this news tonight, also."

"Then I won't say anything about that, either. If there is anything else that you need, regarding the children, you can call me, day or night."

"Thank you, Bronwyn." Ziva said sincerely. "Is it alright if we say goodbye to Ella Brave now?"

"Go ahead. She's probably in the play room."

Indeed, Ella Brave was in the play room that belonged to Bronwyn's daughters, both of whom were still at school for a few more hours. Ella Brave could be found on the floor with a large pile of board books beside her, but squatting on the floor as she pored over an open page in a gigantic I Spy Junior board book. When she saw Ziva and Tony, she grinned because they always made her happy, but then it faltered almost immediatley because she remembered that seeing them would mean that it was time for them to go again.

"Time to leave?" she asked as she stood and looked up at them.

Tony picked her up. "Yeah, but we loved seeing you."

"Yes, we did." Ziva kissed Ella Brave's cheek and smiled at her. "You and your sister stay good for Nanny Bronwyn, and I will come to collect you two later, alright?"

Ella Brave nodded, paused for a beat and then said, "Ziva?"

"Yes, baby dove?"

"Love you."

"I love you, too."

Ella Brave smiled and then turned back to Tony, blowing him a kiss. "Love _you."_

"Right back at you, Ella Brave. I love you, too."

The little girl laughed and gave Tony a hug, happy just have him in her life. Ziva, meanwhile, turned to putty because it made her happy to see Ella Brave interact with a positive male influence. She also realized that Tony wouldn't have something like that to a child, much less one that he knew so well unless he was telling the truth. It also made her wonder again if he'd ever wanted to be a father.

She gave the pair a few more moments before she gently reminded Tony that they had to go.

* * *

The visit to Bronwyn's house turned out to be the only good thing for the next few hours.

When Ziva and Tony returned to the NCIS headquarters, they were in the bullpen for only five minutes when Captain Murphy passed by them on his way to the elevator, having finished being questioned by Gibbs up in the conference room. Upon seeing Ziva, he was genuinely surprised, but he also made a snide remark about how law enforcement was no place for women, much less pregnant women. Ziva brushed off the comment, but it still hurt a little.

As for Liam O'Riley, he was completely in the wind, having 'suddenly' gone on a trip to Atlantic City, just inside the window of time that Miles had passed away.

Like that wasn't already suspicious, the mysterious substance that they'd found on Miles was identified as a special kind of machine oil. According to Abby, it was manufactured and used specifically for mail trucks. That, of course, led them right back to Liam O'Riley, but since he wasn't in town and they were keeping track of his movements through his current spending habits, they had to stick a pin in that aspect and just wait.

The biggest red flag, however, had been that a large duffel bag of cold hard cash had been found in the park with Miles' body. At Abby's and McGee's count, the total amounted to two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and everyone puzzled over why Miles would have needed that much money until Ziva and Tony showed them the goodbye letter, in particular Miles' reference about starting over. The cash made the situation more real than ever for Ziva, but also made her feel angry that the wool had been pulled over her eyes.

But it made seeing her children at the end of the day more worth it.


	6. Rule 12

**Grumpy anon, please go away. If you hate the story so much, keep out.**

* * *

Eight o'clock that night found Gibbs tinkering away in his basement on a project that was quite different from the one he'd been working on just a few days ago.

He was home for less than an hour before he heard his front door open upstairs and someone make their way across the main floor to the basement. The familiar footfalls on the basement steps told Gibbs exactly who had come calling. He didn't even have to look up.

"Hello, Jethro." Jenny said.

"Took you long enough, Jen."

Gibbs put aside the wood and sandpaper he'd been using at his work table and crossed over to the other table, where he found two empty mason jars and filled them with whiskey.

"You're here for the reason I think you are, aren't you?"

Jenny sat on a chair near the stairs and nodded. "Rule Twelve—never date a coworker—although for once, you and I aren't the ones breaking it."

"We haven't broken that for awhile, anyway." Gibbs approached her with the jars and handed her one. "This is about Tony and Ziva isn't it? Them, and what could happen?"

Jenny nodded and accepted the jar, clinking it against Gibbs' before taking a quick swig.

"That's exactly what this is about."

Gibbs pulled up another chair and sat opposite his friend. "I know that Ziva's part of the team now and I'm happy she fits in, but it seems like DiNozzo has been keeping more of an eye on her than usual in the past few weeks. He thinks I don't notice, but I do."

"They _are_ best friends… but sometimes I wonder if they were married in another life, or something."

"Look at you, thinking outside the box." Gibbs praised before pausing.

"Cough it up."

Gibbs leaned back in his chair. "How long have you known Ziva?"

"If you want to get technical, I met her a week before she turned twenty, so since she was a teenager."

"Do you think that she and DiNozzo will ever become romantically?"

"Given the way that things are already going, even though things with Shockley ended less than perfect, in time, yes."

"Would you ever split them up if it ever came to that?"

Jenny shook her head. "Absolutely not, and not just because they'd be miserable; they've even had eyes for each other since she first arrived last year. They also have an amazing catch rate when they're partnered up, and besides—you're the one that has the rule against coworkers dating. It technically _isn't_ against NCIS policy."

She had him there and he realized that he wouldn't win, so he gave a sigh of resignation.

"I won't split them up if or when those two finally see the light of day," he said at length. "But who gets to have the 'We'll kick your ass if you ever make Ziva cry' chat with DiNozzo?"

"Since I haven't been your Probie in forever, and Tony's more like a son to you than he is to me, I'd say that that's going to be all on _you,_ Jethro."

He gave another sigh. "Alright. I'll talk to him tomorrow."

Jenny made a noise of approval and then gave a nod towards the pile of wood on the main work bench. It was just a pile of different-sized pieces of wood covered in sawdust and surrounded by a number of sandpaper scraps. This project had to be really special if it could get him to pause his bigger one.

"Jen, do you know anything about Ziva's favorite color?"

Jenny was taken aback by how random the question sounded, but she answered, "Ziva really loves purple. Why? What are you up to?"

Gibbs pointed to the wood. "See all that?"

"I do."

"It's going to be a rocking chair for Ziva. Every mother, especially a brand new one, should have a good rocking chair."

Jenny grinned and raised her glass again. "You are a good, good man, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and Ziva, Tony, and the kids are lucky to have you in their lives."

Gibbs returned the smile and raised his glass, too. "And they're just as lucky to have _you."_

"I'll drink to that."

The two clinked their glasses and drank.

* * *

Over at Ziva's apartment, the mood was different because it seemed that with each passing hour, Ziva was becoming more and more aware of her yo-yoing hormones and would act accordingly to them, even though she could see her children responding with various levels of being freaked out.

The baby didn't kick yet, but Ziva had a feeling that given how much the little one stretched out and turned over in reaction any abrupt change in her emotions—especially sad ones—she was carrying an early bloomer. Her littlest daughter even squirmed so much that the movements were both visible and unmistakable from the outside. It was just a matter of when.

Alison Joy would get flat-out leery of Ziva's mood swings and in turn act like a capital fussbudget towards her caregiver until she was herself again.

And Ella Brave, when she caught on to Ziva's fluctuating mood, she would pretend not to notice, but still hold her at arm's length until she was back to normal.

Ziva noticed all of this, of course, and it made the reality of her position of single mother, but she put on a brave face because she knew that no matter what, her daughters each loved her unconditionally.

* * *

"Ziva, what's wrong?" A tiny voice asked her.

Ziva returned to reality when she realized that Ella Brave was talking to her. Quickly, Ziva centered her train of thought and beckoned for Ella Brave to sit on her lap since they all camped out on the little girl's bed.

"Baby dove, we need to talk. Do you have your listening ears on?"

Ella Brave sat on Ziva's lap, facing her and nodded. "Yep!"

Ziva sighed heavily. "This is about your daddy. Someone who was very bad hurt him, and he has gone to Heaven to be with your mommy."

Ella Brave's face fell in the blink of an eye and tears began falling even faster—she was having flashbacks to finding out about her mother.

 _"Wh-why,_ Ziva?"

The brunette's heart filled with sorrow for the little girl, and she wiped her tears. "I do not know, my Ella Brave Hope, but my friends and I all working on finding out."

Ella Brave nodded understandingly and forced herself to take deep, calming breaths. She even wiped at more tears with her balled-up fists.

"Me and Porc'pine are _alone!"_

Alison Joy recognized her nickname and from her own position on Ziva's lap and sloppily blew her big sister a kiss.

Ziva kissed the baby on the top of her head and then spoke to Ella Brave. "Did you see that? Your sister says, 'No, we are _not_ alone!' and she is right!"

Ella Brave blew a kiss back to her sister turning to Ziva. She was thinking deeply about something because she was tracing the chain of Ziva's necklace as she knit her brow together in deep concentration.

"What are you thinking?" Ziva asked her after a few moments.

Ella Brave looked at her. "Where were you born? You sound so prettyful."

"I am from a country called Israel, far across the ocean and I was actually born in the desert. Do you know what a desert is?"

Nod. "What do you speak there?"

"I speak Hebrew, baby dove, if that is what you are asking."

Another nod. "How do you say mommy?"

"Ima."

"Ima." Ella Brave echoed, stretching the word out as she tried it out for the first time before putting one hand over her heart and the other over Ziva's. "You will be _ours_ now?"

Ziva's heart jumped. "I am working on making that happen. Would you look me to yours and Alison's ima?"

Ella Brave bobbed her head and framed Ziva's face in her tiny hands. "You will not go, my Ziva?"

A year ago, Ziva would have answered that question in a logical, detached way, but now that she was a mother, she answered in a very genuine way.

"I will not go anywhere, Ella Brave. I love you and Alison Joy _so_ much, and I will do everything I can to make sure that you two will never be alone."

Ella Brave's bottom lip trembled and she began to cry again. "Love you, ima."

"Ani ohevet otach." Ziva tapped Ella Brave playfully on the nose. "That means I love you."

Ella Brave giggled quickly, but Ziva quickly tacked something else on.

"I love you and your sister so very much, but it is perfectly okay to miss your daddy and your mommy. Do you understand?"

"They _left."_ Ella Brave blew a raspberry as she made a slashing movement across the air with both hands. _"Gone."_

Clearly, she was was making a point.

"Okay, Baby Dove, I hear you." Ziva tapped Ella Brave on the nose again, laughing when the little one burst into giggles. "I have a surprise for you and your sister."

Ella Brave looked around. "Where?"

Ziva leaned back and pulled up the material of her tank top so that her bare middle was exposed for Ella Brave to see. Cradling Alison Joy in one arm, Ziva used her free hand to frame the shape of her middle.

"Ella, I am having a baby."

To Ziva's astonishment, Ella Brave became her happiest yet. "A baby?"

Ziva nodded and smiled. "You and Alison are getting a sister, but not for quite a few more sleeps yet. What do you think?"

Ella Brave now felt like her brain was going to melt. "A sister?"

"Yes!"

Ella Brave pointed to Ziva's middle. "She is there?"

"Indeed, she is."

"Ima, I'm in love."

Ziva could not believe her luck that this was going so well and her heart was turning happy cartwheels, but she still kept her cool because at this point, accidentally spooking her daughters would just be a bummer.

She also wished that Tony could have been there so she would have at least had a shoulder to cry on.

Just when she thought things couldn't get any cuter, Ella Brave leaned forward and pressed a few kisses to the bump as she began to talk to her littlest sister. She spoke to her with as much love as she spoke to Alison Joy on a regular basis.

At that point, Alison Joy had been watching situation with keen interest and because she was clever enough to understand the basic sign language that Ziva had been teaching her, she asked what was happening. When Ziva signed to her about the baby, she was thrilled and proceeded to copy her big sister and shower their littlest sibling with lots of love.

Well, Ziva thought. That couldn't have gone any better.

She let the Ella Brave and Alison Joy talk themselves out and make noise until she fell asleep. After that, she laid them in their beds and wandered back into the living room, fixing her shirt as she went.

"How I wish Tony was here." she said aloud as she sat down on her couch.

Not even two minutes later, Ziva's phone sounded at her, making noise with a new text.

 _DING!_

It was from Tony. _Open your door ;)_

Curious and excited, Ziva set her phone down and crossed the living room, wincing slightly as she went because her feet were all of a sudden feeling puffy and slightly swollen.

When she opened her door, though, her discomfort washed away immediately the second she was met by the sight of Tony smiling happily at her.

Ziva hugged him.


	7. Only If For A Night

**It's my birthday!**

* * *

Tony returned Ziva's hug, and when he looked at her as rested her head on his chest, he turned to goo when he saw that she had her eyes closed in enjoyment and was even smiling. Just for that, he fell a little more in love with her.

Ziva returned to her senses first, and when she realized that Tony hadn't even made it past the front door, she withdrew, and with a blush, held the door open a little wider.

"Please come in, Tony." she told him. "I am so happy to see you."

"I can tell." When he entered and she shut the door behind him, he held a small carton to her. "I brought more food."

Ziva spotted the stamp of a local bakery on the box and became excited immediately—Tony had gone to her favorite bakery, and not only that, but it had a wide selection of Kosher treats that she liked to get when she was homesick for Israel. Her excitement grew as she opened the carton to find what was inside, although she became perplexed very quickly.

"Thank you, but chocolate cupcakes, and one has a candle in it?"

"I remembered that you said your birthday was last week, and I thought we could celebrate together—if you want. The candle is to blow out when you make a wish, although it's bad luck to say what you wished for."

"This is very thoughtful of you, Tony. Thank you." (he's really stopped by because he just wanted to see her again, and they both knew it) "The blowing out of the candle, though, that is an American tradition, yes?"

Tony shuddered as old childhood memories from boarding school came rushing back. "Oh, yes, especially when you're little, or have kids to throw a birthday party for. Speaking of kids, where are Ella and Alison?"

"Asleep in their beds, meaning that you and I will not be interrupted."

As she said this, she watched Tony take off his jacket and hang it up on the coatrack where everyone else kept their own. His shoes went on the shoe rack directly beneath. Ziva's heartbeat hastened when she noticed that her partner was dressed in an ensemble she didn't see too often on him—jeans and a muscle t-shirt, and even sneakers. For as long as she had known Tony so far, he prided himself on his appearance and he enhanced it by wearing expensive things. The fact that he was dressed like _this_ meant that he'd actually dressed _way_ down, specifically for _her._

His outfit also showed off just how muscular he was.

"Do you see something you like, Ziva?"

She jumped and quickly, said, "Come—I will get plates and matches now."

Tony stared after her in wonder—she had neither confirmed nor denied the inquiry, but from the way her blush had suddenly deepened, he _totally_ knew that she had been checking him out.

This was going to be an interesting night.

* * *

By the time they finished their cupcakes, the two friends were legitimately enjoying each other's company, just chatting with each other. The TV was on, although it was just background noise for the time being.

"Ziva," Tony said at one point. "When you blew out the candle, what did you wish for?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Nice try, Tony. Were you not the one who said that it is bad luck to reveal what you wish for?"

Ziva's wish had been for a genuine happy ending with Tony, being happy with him, loving him more than she already did, being his wife, and raising the children with him. She also hoped that somewhere in that wished-fore, longed-for better future that she could have one more baby to round things out.

Tony shrugged. "I tried."

"As I said, it was a nice try…"

Her words trailed off as she wrinkled her nose and flexed her toes, feeling discomfort there again.

"What's wrong?" Tony asked.

She blew out a breath. "My feet are swollen, just a 'pregnancy quirk,' as my doctor put it, and it is _quite_ uncomfortable. The problem has only just arisen tonight."

"Well, if you don't accidentally kick me where it counts, I can rub your feet, or something."

"Y-you would do that?"

"Yes." he answered without missing a beat. "Ziva, you're the best _best_ friend I've ever had in my life. I'll do anything for you, even rub your feet."

"Thank you," Ziva rearranged herself so that she was propped up on a lot of pillows as she put her feet in Tony's lap. "And _you_ are the best _best_ friend that _I_ have ever had."

Tony's heart jumped at that, and only because he didn't want Ziva to get inside his head, he began to rub her feet as they turned back to the TV again. The sounds of relief that she was making before long were music to Tony's ears.

* * *

Eventually, talk turned to their own lives.

"I've always been curious," Tony began. "But where did you get your necklace?"

At the mention of her most prized possession, Ziva touched a hand to the Star Of David necklace that she wore at all times unless she was asleep.

"I got it in Israel at my bat mitzvah when I turned twelve. My mother gave it to me." she explained. "She gave one to my sister at her bat mitzvah, as well, and she was buried with it when she died."

"You had a sibling other than Ari?"

"Mhm. Her name was Talia, and since she was younger than me, so I called her Tali."

"What happened to Tali?"

"She was _innocent,_ but a casualty of war—she was killed at the market because of a suicide bomber, and she was just sixteen. I was nineteen when it happened, and she was only sixteen. I miss her a lot."

Ziva looked like she was going to cry, so Tony asked another question.

"What are your parents like?"

"My father is the leader of The Mossad, actually, and he could technically call me back whenever he wishes, but if he does, I am going to stall."

"Until…?"

She pointed to her middle. "Until I am too far along to get on a plane; even if I was not a mother now, I _still_ would not want to go back home."

"America grew on you, huh?"

"Yes, and although I know my father loves me because I am his child, if he knew about me liking it here, he'd consider it betrayal, but I do not care because I am truly happy for the first time in far too long."

Though Ziva's words had been filled with fondness in some places, her overall tone said that she was finished talking about her father, so Tony changed tacks.

"Is your mom still around?"

"No. She was with Tali when the bomb went off, and she got hit, but she didn't pass away from complications until after the funeral."

Tony offered her his condolences. "I'm sorry about Tali and your mother."

"Thank you… and actually, Tony, Tali and my mother would have both _adored_ you. They also would have tried to… oh, _what_ is the phrase I am thinking of?"

Ziva tapped the tips of her pointer fingers together, literally trying to make a connection. Luckily, Tony was on the same wavelength.

"Are you tying to say that your sister and your mother would have tried to set you and I up on a date?"

"Yes."

There was a beat of silence on Tony's part, and then, "Well, would you do it?"

"If or when you offer," Ziva said shyly. "Then absolutely."

Tony had long since finished massaging Ziva's feet, and they were still in his lap now, but even still, it took a great amount of self-control to not get on to floor, walk over on his knees to her and kiss her.

"Then I'll wait for you." Tony told her. "I really will."

Ziva sat up and took the initiative, although it wasn't in a way that Tony hadn't been expecting—she straddled him and put her hands on his shoulders, pinning him to the couch.

"Tony, what are you saying to me?"

"That I like you, Ziva—a lot—and I'm _very_ attracted to you. If you still feel that way about a date anything that could come after, I _will_ wait for you."

Ziva's heart turned over and she moved her hands from Tony's shoulders to his face, holding it, wanting to make sure this wasn't a dream.

 _"How_ long will you wait?"

"For as long as you need."

"What about after this case is over?"

"Alright." Tony agreed, fully understanding the part of the question that hadn't been asked. "After this case."

Now Ziva was the one fighting the need to kiss the person opposite her, but only because she had one more important point to make.

"I have three daughters, though, Tony, and _two_ of them lost _both_ of their biological parents in a _very_ short amount of time. I have seen how much you love them, but how do I know, after the promise you have just made me, that you will not go chasing off after the next beautiful woman you see?"

"Because I've always wanted kids and someone to share that life with. I've been engaged before, and half the reason it didn't work was because she didn't want kids." he lovingly caressed Ziva's cheek with his knuckles. "But then you showed up, and I've _never_ been happier. _That's_ why I won't stray, and _that's_ why I'll wait for you. In fact…"

Tony pulled out a saint medal necklace he'd been wearing underneath his shirt and put it around Ziva's neck, even fixing her hair afterwards.

"My mom gave me that just before she died when I was a kid, and it's one my most favorite things that I own." he told her as she examined the medal. "Amongst other things, dear Saint Anthony there is the patron saint of travelers, and that works for you."

Ziva smiled at him. "It really does."

"Consider that medal a promise that I won't have a wandering eye, and that I'll wait for you and that I'll even keep loving Ella Brave, Alison Joy, and Ladybug like they're mine because I have ever since you introduced me to them."

"Oh, T—woah…"

Ziva got distracted when she felt something from her middle that was more than just her daughter's usual stretching and wiggling.

"Talk to me." Tony prompted gently.

"Ladybug is _kicking_ me for the first time!" Ziva hiked up her shirt to show off her middle, and when she touched a hand to it, she actually giggled. "Quick—give me your hand!"

Tony did, and he felt himself gasping in awe because he was definitely feeling the same kicks and parries that Ziva was feeling.

"Wow." he breathed. "Is this real?"

Ziva nodded. "She is kicking because she heard you—she is _always_ her _wiggliest_ when she hears you. Nobody else."

"What can I say?" Tony said cheekily. "Kids love me."

Normally, Ziva would have punched Tony for being so cheesy, but she had mercy on him. "Yes. Yes, they do."

"I—"

A sudden wail could be heard on the baby monitor on the coffee table, and Ziva groaned. The moment had been ruined.

"Little porcupine is teething, and according to Bronwyn said that today was an extra bad day." Ziva sighed, fixing her shirt as she got up. "I will go get her, but will you please retrieve her teething toy from the freezer? It looks like a star."

Tony stood and stretched. "Sure thing, Z. I can do that."

As the two parted ways and Tony headed towards the kitchen, he found himself realizing that he and Ziva were playing house again. But he really liked it.

* * *

The next twenty minutes were busy.

Alison Joy appreciated being out of her crib and was very thankful to suck and slobber on her teething toy, but she refused to go to Ziva, instead settling for Tony, although not until after he took his shirt off and Ziva laid her on Tony's chest. All she'd wanted was to feel his warmth and his heartbeat. On a whim, Ziva undressed the baby down to her diaper and laid her favorite blanket over her back. She loved it, and when Ziva informed Tony that that particular brand of comforting was called skin-to-skin, he found that he enjoyed it as much as Alison Joy clearly did.

Not long after, Ella Brave woke up, shrieking from a nightmare that she and Alison Joy were getting taken away from Ziva. It wasn't until she was calm again that she listen to reason, particularly Ziva telling her that Tony was in the front room, she was wide awake and made a dash for them.

After that, though, Ella Brave and Alison Joy were wide awake, and when the baby heard them, she jumped and kicked even more, just wanting to show off. Her sisters' words, noises, and kisses of encouragement egged her on.

* * *

Some time later, when the children were all settled but still awake, Tony checked the time and saw that it was after eleven o'clock.

Alison Joy remained cuddled up on Tony's chest, thrilled to have all of this bonding time with her newest caregiver. Ella Brave was in Tony's lap, the blanket from her bed spread out over them to keep her warm, but she was mostly using her friend as a pillow as they watched old reruns of _Scooby Doo_ on the TV, the volume on low. Even Ladybug could be seen occasionally pressing against Ziva's taut skin.

Tony loved everything about the current situation, but it really was getting late. He looked over at Ziva, who was laying on her side with her back to him and had her head resting on his thigh. She hadn't made noise in quite some time.

Tony said her name very softly. "Ziva?"

"Hm?" came the response in a sleepy tone. "I am _so_ tired… and Ladybug is _finally_ considering slumber…"

"I know, I know, but I just saw that it's after eleven."

Ziva could barely keep her eyes open, but she put a hand on Tony's knee. "Stay with your family tonight. Please."

"Okay, I will. You sleep, and I'll keep an eye on the kids."

Ziva's eyes were shut again and sleep was becoming her quickly, so that's why she wasn't one hundred percent aware of what she said.

"I love you…"

And not for the first time that night, Tony turned to goo.

"I love you, too." he told her in complete sincerity—because he really did, and he could easily picture being married to her.

But she didn't hear him because she was fast asleep.


	8. Ziva's Offer

Tony put everyone in their beds when they finally fell asleep, and all was quiet until Alison Joy woke again around two-thirty. She slept in a bassinet in Ziva's room, so Ziva was the first one to wake up and respond to her. Tony woke up a few minutes later and when he went to check on them, he saw that the baby was awake and sniffly, rubbing her eyes and whimpering as she felt more pain from her teeth coming in. Ziva, on the other hand, was just trying to keep her eyes open.

"Go back to sleep, Tony." she told him when he sat beside her.

"You can hardly stay awake." he said gently. "Let me look after Alison."

"She might want a bottle. I think there is one in the fridge…"

"Ziva, _look_ at her—she _wants_ to come to me."

Indeed, the baby was leaning towards Tony, arms outstretched and babbling. She was getting frustrated because she knew what she wanted, but Ziva had yet to catch up.

When Ziva saw what her daughter was doing, she gave her a kiss and passed her to Tony, smiling when she cuddled up him immediately. Tony fetched one Alison Joy's blankets from the bassinet and draped it over her for warmth. The baby made a happy noise, but no effort to sleep, even when Tony stood and began swaying side-to-side gently with her.

"Someone loves her abba-leh." Ziva said around a yawn as she crawled back under her blankets.

"What does that word mean?" Tony asked.

"In Hebrew, it means daddy, because that is what you are to all of our girls now."

Tony's heart swelled with pride—he really _had_ become a dad to Ziva's children, hadn't he?

He made to say something about being happy to accept the title of 'abba-leh,' but Ziva had fallen asleep again, so he just let her be and left the room with Alison Joy.

Unsurprisingly, it was teething pain that was keeping Alison Joy awake, and when Tony offered her her teething ring, she rejected it after five minutes. Before long, Tony heard a rumble that wasn't from his own stomach, so he gave the baby her bottle. She made a trilling noise and suckled on it like a champion.

"You're a happy little camper now, aren't you?" Tony laughed. "We've gotta teach you to pace yourself, though."

Alison Joy kicked a foot in response—she really liked the sound of Tony's voice.

"You and your sisters are so lucky that Ziva is your mom now, kid, because when she loves, she loves deeply. I happen to know that she'd do anything for any of you, so I'm going to do whatever it takes to make sure that she can be a mom to you, Ella, and Ladybug the way she wants to be."

Alison Joy kicked both feet.

"I've also never loved anyone more than her, kid, and one day, when she's ready—and hopefully after I've met her dad—I'm going to ask her to marry me. That'll mean a wedding, and even dressing you and your sisters up; won't that be fun?"

Alison Joy gave a sleepy yawn and stretched—Tony's voice was very calming, but she was determined to finish her bottle.

Tony noticed this and kept talking to her, even going so far as to tell her that his next project was all about learning what Ziva's ring size was.

A year ago, Tony never would have thought that he'd be in this kind of position—unintentionally becoming a dad to kids that weren't even his, but now that he was in it, he really couldn't imagine his life, or even his future, for that matter, any other way… and he really liked that.

* * *

The next morning was just like the previous one had been, although Tony and Ziva were both a little tired because of the sleeping patterns of their children.

By the time they got to their floor of the NCIS building, they did their best to make it look like they'd slept the whole night through, but with Ladybug happily kicking away in Ziva's womb and Tony's head abuzz with trying to figure out how to obtain the knowledge of his partner's ring size was, their thoughts were other places altogether.

When the elevator doors opened, though, they were greeted by Gibbs. Kind of.

"Good morning, Gibbs." chirped Ziva as she disembarked.

He held a palm out in front of him as he did, effectively stopping Tony in his tracks when he accidentally walked into it, but he still greeted his underling.

"And good morning to you, too, Ziva. Don't go too far from the elevator."

"Okay?" was all Ziva said before Gibbs boarded the lift and the doors closed him.

In the elevator, Gibbs flipped the 'stop elevator' switch, and the lift halted immediately, and Gibbs turned on Tony, who instinctively backed up into the wall—Gibbs' patented 'Sneeze, and I will fucking end you' expression was on.

"H-hi, Boss." Tony stuttered. "What's up?"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "You tell me—are you and Ziva breaking Rule Twelve?"

"Rule Twelve," Tony automatically recited. "Is 'Never date a coworker,' and technically, to answer your question, we aren't breaking it, no."

"But…?"

"I have been, for the past two nights and mornings, been helping Ziva with Ella and Alison."

Gibbs gave him a head slap. "That's for bonding with them, DiNozzo!"

"The kids bonded first," Tony said as he rubbed his head. "And I actually care about Ella, Alison, and the baby. A lot."

"Ziva, too?"

Tony shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "If I tell you the answer to that, are you going to hit me again?"

"Depends on how mature your words are."

"I finally grew up in the last two days—like you've been telling me to all these years—and I've become a dad to those little girls to the point where I love them like they were my own. As for Ziva, I love her enough to want to _marry_ her. I know Shockley isn't even in the ground yet, but I really, _really_ love Ziva, and I know that she feels like that about me, too."

"If you break her heart, or the hearts of any of those three precious little girls she's mothering, just remember that I don't need my sniper skills to kill you and make it look like an accident. Am I clear?"

"Crystal."

After that, Gibbs was actually cheerful. "I'm nixing Rule Twelve, now and forever, but I'll tell the others on my own, alright?"

Tony could hardly believe what he was hearing, but still, he managed, "Yes, Boss. Thank you, Boss."

"Congratulations. Don't forget to breathe." (Tony let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding) "And Tony?"

"Yes?"

"Your best friend's ring size is eight."

"How do you kn—"

"I know a little about a lot, and also—act casual."

"Act casual." he echoed. "Right."

Gibbs started the elevator up again.

"Ziva?"

She jumped at the sound of the voice calling her name, but only because she wasn't used to hearing it in this area of the building, this time of morning. It was Abby, and while she was dressed in one of her usual goth-inspired outfits and even had a muffler for her hands to fight against the cold—it matched her wool poncho—there seemed something a little off-kilter about her, despite the smile that was plastered on her face.

"Abby!" she exclaimed, happy to see her friend as she surveyed her up and down. "What are you doing up here?"

"The elevator jammed, or something. I haven't been down to my lab yet, so I took the stairs to see what was happening."

"Because the problem usually is up here, isn't it?" Ziva laughed and nodded towards the elevator doors. "Gibbs is no doubt having a chat with Tony that he does not want me to hear."

Abby just smiled, but it seemed vacant. That raised a red flag for Ziva immediately.

"Abigail, what is wrong?" Ziva surveyed her again. "Something seems a little helter-skelter about you."

"That's actually _off-kilter,"_ the older woman gently corrected. "But points for trying."

"You also seem… _shorter."_

Abby was already four inches taller than Ziva to start with, but when she had on any of her black leather buckle boots, she was elevated to a height that was above average for a woman. They still weren't at the same eye-level, but Abby wasn't looking down as far today.

"It's my shoes." Abby pointed to her feet. "I have on flats."

In contrast with Abby's black dress, her flats were a bright glittery purple color.

"I quite like them," Ziva answered honestly before putting her hands on her hips and arching an eyebrow. "But you still have not answered my question yet, Abigail."

"Do you just like saying my name now? You've only ever called me Abby before, at least to my face."

"I have always found Abigail a very beautiful name because it is _Hebrew,_ actually, and it means 'father's joy.' It reminds me of my bond with my father, as well as the one that you have with Gibbs."

Abby caved at that, giving Ziva a hug. Despite how rocky things had been in the beginning, especially because of the Slapping Incident, they were very good friends now and got on like sisters… and Ziva had never had a big sister before.

"I, uh, found something out yesterday, and it's got me a little bit turned around. Will you come down to the lab when you get a chance to escape from Gibbs, Tony, and McGee?"

"I could," Ziva said, thinking of a thought that had crossed her mind earlier that morning. _"Or_ I could ask you something that would ensure _no_ bother from the boys."

"I'm all ears."

"Miles' place is off-limits yet, and I do not have that many things for the girls at mine. I am also in desperate need of clothes for myself because the clothes I am wearing now are from the girls' nanny, when she was pregnant a few years ago." (Ziva was rambling, and they both knew it) "Will you come shopping with us later? Ella would love to see you, and I would like to spend time with you because you remind me a lot of my sister. She would have loved you."

Abby had not been expecting that last part, and was immediately back to her cheerful self—Ziva's compliment had actually brightened her spirits, a feeling she gladly welcomed because she'd spent most of the night crying.

And Ziva had completely meant it when she said that Tali would have loved Abby—her forte had been science and engineering. Tali had dreamed of getting out of Israel to study at Stanford. She and Abby would have been two peas in a pod.

"Of course I'll come!" Abby hugged Ziva. "I can't wai—oh! Was that a _kick?"_

She stepped back and looked at Ziva's bump and then the woman herself.

"She _kicks_ now?"

Ziva nodded and gazed at her distended middle, her heart fluttering when she felt her daughter turn over.

"Calm down, Ladybug. I am just talking to Doda Abby."

As if suddenly having been fed caffeine, baby Ladybug began kicking her mother like the sky was falling.

"What does that word mean?" Abby asked. "The word you used before my name?"

Ziva smiled at her. "It means aunt because you are her Aunt Abby. Would you like to feel her?"

Abby nodded and when Ziva held both of her hands to the spot where the baby was kicking the most, her heart both fluttered and wanted to break.

Before she could say anything, the elevator started up again, so they drew apart just in time to see Gibbs get off the lift, cool as a cucumber, while Tony nearly stumbled out, looking spooked.

"Are you alright?" Ziva asked, fixing Tony's crooked shirt collar. "You look like you just had a conversation with your maker."

"More like Jacob Marley."

"Who?"

"He's an iconic movie character from _A Christmas Carol—_ oh, I'll show you at Christmastime."

All of a sudden, the door leading to the stairwell opened and McGee burst in, slightly out of breath.

"Nice of you to join us, McGee." Gibbs told him.

"Sorry—the elevator was jammed, and I got stuck with a Chatty Kathy down in the lobby."

"What is a Chatty Kathy?" Ziva wanted to know.

"A person who talks a lot." Gibbs explained before walking to his desk.

"Oh! Like Tony?"

 _"Just_ like him!"

"Hey!" Tony protested, scuttling after him. "I'm not _that_ bad!"

Abby pressed the down button for the elevator, and it opened immediately.

"And on that note, I'll be in my lair!" she called as she boarded the elevator and the doors closed.

No sooner had she left the room than Ziva headed over to the bullpen in response to Tony summoning her to help settle a squabble.

"Life here is never dull." she murmured.

Ladybug donated her two cents by kicking in agreement.

That left McGee as the last one standing. Of course, he was confused.

"I _know_ I missed something! This is what I get for explaining where the exit was!"

* * *

The team had just started to act like actual adults when Ziva received a call on her desk phone.

"Who was that?" Gibbs asked when she hung up, having noticed her perplexed expression.

"Cynthia, the director's personal secretary. She told me that Director Shepherd wants to see me now, up in the conference room."

"Go ahead and go."

With a little effort and after steadying herself, Ziva was on her feet, but when she caught sight of Tony, Gibbs, and McGee watching her apprehensively, she rolled her eyes at them.

"Stop it, all of you!" she said as she walked past them to the elevator. "I am not a beached whale _yet!"_

"She doesn't know who Jacob Marley is," Tony remarked. "But she got the expression 'beached whale' correct?"

"Anthony, I heard that!" Ziva called without looking back.

If she had, though, she would have seen Gibbs throwing a paper ball at him.

Up in the conference room, Ziva saw Jenny, along with a smartly-dressed important-looking woman, chatting together over at the water table by the window.

"How are you, Ziva?" Jenny asked as she joined them.

The young woman was bushed and already resting her hands in the small of her back, but she still answered truthfully. "One child could _not_ sleep, another _would_ not, and the third is _nocturnal."_

"Then I promise this won't take long." she indicated the other woman. "I would like to introduce you to my friend, Judge Deborah Amos."

"How do you do." Ziva greeted her as they shook hands.

Her new acquaintance returned her greeting, speaking with a lilting accent just like hers. "Shalom, Ziva."

"You are from Israel?" Ziva asked, lighting up. "Not a lot of people in this town greet me in that way."

"I am from Bethlehem, to be exact," (next to her, Jenny gave a noisy, pointed cough) "And how I got here is another tale. The point of _this_ one is that anyone who is a friend of Jenny's is a new friend of mine—she has told me about the situation with Ella Brave and Alison Joy. I want to help you, especially with emergency custody."

So this was the contact that Jenny mentioned, Ziva thought.

"You work in Family Court, yes?"

Deborah nodded. "Yes, and I will help you do whatever it takes to ensure that they are yours, but first I have to know how much you want to be their mother."

Ziva had fallen in love with Ella Brave and Alison Joy the second she'd first met them. Now, she'd fight to the very end for them.

"More than anything. Any sacrifice I would have to make on their behalf would be worth it because I love Ella and Alison like they grew in my body."

"Funny that you should be that passionate—there is one, surefire way that will guarantee you being able to adopt them after the emergency custody process."

"Please tell me."

"You will have to become an American citizen."

A year ago, Ziva would have laughed at that, but now she answered without hesitation.

"I will do it."


	9. Good Fortune

**Thank you, anon, for giving me an excellent idea ;)**

* * *

Deborah was quite surprised by how fast Ziva had arrived at her decision, but Jenny was actually amused.

"Ziva," she said. "Nothing you don't want or can't process doesn't have to happen today, so just slow down a little; you haven't even heard the process that Deborah has in mind. I'm surprised you haven't gone through the process of elimination yet."

Ziva was actually wildly intelligent for someone her age, but long before going to America at all had even been in the realm of possibility at all for her, she had still studied up on all the ways to become an American citizen, just in case.

That's why she was wracking her brain, and when she figured out what the other two were thinking, she sat down in the nearest chair.

 _"Oh…"_

The others both sat down with her, and Jenny encouraged, "Say it out loud."

"To become an American citizen in the way that you two are thinking, I would have to _marry_ a permanent one, or someone who was _already_ born here."

Deborah nodded. "Even including expediting the process, which I have the power to do, it is the least complicated option, although it would still involve you studying up and taking the Oath of Independence at a naturalization ceremony. Would you do it?"

"Yes."

"Do you have someone in your life who would do this for you?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes—he is my best friend. He would do anything for me, and I, him. When do you need an answer?"

"By New Year's Eve at noon because the studying period begins on January first and ends on the thirty-first. The ceremony will be at noon on that day."

"I understand."

"Ziva," Jenny said suddenly to her friend. "What about your father?"

Ziva rubbed her middle absently as she felt her unborn offspring turn over, but at the same time, thoughts of her father filled her mind. She loved him because he was her father, and there had once been a time when everything had been completely normal, but now that Rivka, Tali, and Ari were all dead, Ziva and Eli were the only ones left… and all each other had. Both were also extremely loyal, as most people went, but Ziva was an adult now, and having experienced every day life without being under the thumb of Eli David,she'd long since come to the choice that it was her life, and she was the only one who was going to be able to have that kind of control over it.

"It is my life," she finally said. "And when he learns of all this, I _will_ make him see reason because in the end, he _is_ a reasonable man."

Deborah held her hands up in a 'time-out' position. "Should _I_ know who your father is?"

"You _are_ from Bethlehem, yes?" inquired Ziva.

"Yes, but I was adopted by an American couple when I was two and grew up here in Maryland. I even married an American man, but I have an accent like yours because my parents made sure that I was raised in the ways of our people, so I spent a lot of time at Hebrew school and the synagogue. I have also been back to Israel many times over the years, even to go to the Wailing Wall, but I am not as up-to-date in local politics and current events as you no doubt are."

Ziva had mercy on Deborah for that. "My father is Eli David, the current director of The Mossad. I am one of his officers and was actually lent to NCIS last year, but I liked it, so I chose to stay."

"Are you trained in Mossad tactics?"

"I have been since I was twelve."

"Your father has the authority to call you back, I presume?"

"He does."

"Do you want to go back to The Mossad?"

"No." Ziva said adamantly. "It _is_ all I have known for the last half of my life, but even before I met the Shockleys, I already knew that NCIS and America are where I truly belong."

Deborah was very moved by that, so she said, "Becoming an American citizen and being in the occupation you are in would mean full resignation from The Mossad to study up so you can become a full NCIS agent. Would you do that?"

"If it means raising my children here so they can have healthier childhoods than I did, yes."

Deborah nodded to Ziva's big belly. "How far along are you?"

"Twenty-one weeks, almost twenty-two."

"Jenny and I will have a meeting with your team leader soon about all this, which you do not have to be present for, and I strongly advise that you do not worry about you worry about studying to become a full agent until after the baby comes."

"Thank you."

Deborah smiled. "There _is_ one other thing before we wrap this up."

"Do tell."

"If you are available now, I would like you and Jenny to come to my office—you can complete all of the forms will ensure you having custody of Ella Brave and Alison Joy, even today, and Jenny can sign as your witness where it is needed."

Ziva's heart jumped and she turned to her foremost CO. "What about the case? What about Gibbs?"

"This is about the future of your family—he'll understand."

That made Ziva feel better, so she turned back to Deborah again. "Then I am happy to go now."

"Excellent." Deborah stood and helped Ziva to her feet. "Please wait a moment while we gather our things."

Agreeing, Ziva soon found herself being accompanied by her superiors back down to the bullpen.

"Going somewhere, David?" Gibbs asked when he saw her gathering her things at her desk.

"I believe the expression, "Field trip!" is applicable here."

"Oh, really? Who are going with?"

Ziva nodded towards her companions, who were taking pleasure in the fact that Tony and McGee had abandoned their tasks completely to watch this conversation unfold.

"Them."

The director and her judicial companion. were now standing in front of Gibbs' desk, both grinning like a pair of Cheshire Cats.

Oh boy, Gibbs thought as he stood and straightened out his appearance.

Jenny spoke. "Jethro, this is my good friend, Judge Deborah Amos."

"Nice to meet you, Your Honor." Gibbs told the judge as they shook hands.

"Likewise, Agent Gibbs. Jenny has told me a lot about you over the years, and I am so pleased to meet you at last."

Jenny jumped backed into the conversation. "We're going to borrow Ziva for awhile because she has a bit of non-negotiable business to conduct at Deborah's office."

The director had a smile on her face, but because Gibbs knew his old Probie so well, he knew that that was her 'don't you dare fuck with me' look and immediately decided that he'd be brought into the loop if or when Ziva allowed it.

"Alright, then. Just don't keep her out too late because she does have a family now."

Now Jenny's grin was impish. "Don't you worry about us."

* * *

Just over an hour later, Ziva was already leaving Deborah's office building with Jenny and heading to her car, where her driver was waiting for them.

Ziva was in a daze.

True to her word, not only did the judge help Ziva with all of the paperwork regarding the emergency placement of the Shockley sisters, but she cut through so much red tape that everything was completely filed and processed by the time Ziva and Jenny left.

Ziva still had to go through the official adoption process, of course, but they'd officially start after she gained her citizenship. For now, though, it meant that nobody—not even people who worked for her father—would ever be able to take Ella Brave and Alison Joy away from her.

They were _hers_ now because she was their _mother!_

Ziva didn't come back to reality until she'd put her things away at her desk and saw only McGee in the bullpen.

"Back already?" he asked.

Ziva gave a composed nod. "Tell me—where is Tony?"

"He just went into the lounge a minute ago. Don't you want to hear about the case? You'll never believe—and she's gone."

Ziva had vacated the area after hearing Tony's location, and once again McGee was all by himself.

Ziva found Tony alone and kicking one of the vending machines—it had eaten his dollar again.

"Tony, this makes literally _five_ dollars in the last _three-and-a-half weeks."_

He hadn't heard her come in over the racket he'd been making, but when he heard her, he stopped what he was doing and turned to face her, happy to see her, even though she'd been gone for less than two hours.

"Where did you go with Director Shepherd and her friend?"

Instead of answering verbally, Ziva crossed the room, pinned Tony against the vending machine and kissed him.

Deeply.


	10. Well In Hand

Tony thought he'd died and gone to Heaven.

Ziva had kissed him completely out of the blue, and not only that, but she'd initiated it. Kissing her was as magical as he'd always imagined.

"Wow!" He said when they pulled apart. "What was _that_ for?"

"Because the best thing _ever_ has just happened, and I could not wait to tell you." she beamed. "I am also finally not shy to say something that I have known forever, but was too self-conscious to say anything. I think in some way that I was just kidding myself these past months…"

"You can tell me _anything,_ Ziva."

She took a breath and exhaled slowly. "Tony, I love you. I always have, and I always will."

Tony was floored. Never—outside of his dreams—had he imagined that Ziva would say those words to him, but now that she had and they both knew she was talking from the heart, he believed her… especially because at that particular moment, she was looking at him with all the love in the world.

In return, he gave her a genuine response of his own.

"Ziva, I love you, too, and the little family we've made." he kissed her back. "It's only _ever_ been you."

"I feel the same." she sighed happily. "As for that wonderful thing that I jus mentioned—Ella and Alison are now _mine,_ Tony! Judge Amos helped me to secure emergency custody for them on their behalf, and it means that I will be able to _adopt_ them in due time!"

Tony didn't think it was possible, but his heart even more in orbit now. "I'm _so_ happy for you!"

"Thank you, and that is not even all." she said giddily.

"No?"

"Judge Amos helped me to ensure that not only will I be able to adopt Ella and Alison, but also that _nobody_ will _ever_ be able to take them away from me!"

It was clear that Ziva wanted to cry because she was overwhelmed by all of the emotion, and she was only keeping her composure in check because they were at work, so Tony held his partner's hands in hips and kissed her fingertips.

"Is there anything else that you want to share?"

"Yes, but it will have to wait." she sighed. "Come over at eight? The children will be happy to see you, but sleepy."

"Eight works. Got plans before that?"

Ziva nodded. "I am going shopping with Abby, Ella, and Alison. Plus, the little ones and myself need new clothes."

"You just want to take them shopping, don't you?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "And so would _you_ if you knew how much Ella loves i—oof!"

Bored, Ladybug began kicking elbowing her mother, wanting attention.

"Calm down, little girl." Ziva told her daughter as she glided her hands over her bump, smiling when she felt smaller ones push back. "Abba-leh and I have not forgotten about you."

The little one wouldn't relent, so Ziva took one of Tony's hands and put it over the spot where Ladybug was moving. Ladybug immediately moved around even more when she felt the slight pressure on the surface of her confines; she always knew when Tony was around and was beginning to recognize his voice. The spot where Ziva put Tony's hand, though, was on the underside of her bump, and that made him nervous. In seeing that, Ziva spoke in a kind tone to him, despite her discomfort.

"You are the _only_ one who has permission to touch me like this—the way a husband touches his wife—because even Ladybug knows how gentle you are. _Please_ talk to her."

Tony stooped down and spoke to the baby. "Hey, in there—we can both feel you both feel you jumping around in there like pop rocks, but you _have_ to dial back, alright? If you do, I _promise_ that when I come over later, I'll make something good to eat!"

To Tony's great surprise and Ziva's enormous relief, Ladybug finally calmed down and settled in for a nap.

"She knows my voice!" Tony said proudly as he stood.

"Indeed, and thank you for getting her to settle. I really appreciate i—"

 _BEEP!_

Her words were cut off by her phone signaling her of a new text.

"What does it say?" Tony asked her when he saw Ziva read it.

"It is from McGee: he wants you and I over in Observation Room Two now."

"Then let's go."

Ziva and Tony arrived to find McGee, along with Abby, Ducky, Palmer, and even Jenny gathered together.

"What is happening?" Ziva asked. "Why are you all here?"

"Liam O'Connor is here—he actually turned himself in." Jenny explained. "Look."

Jenny pointed to the to the glass and the all turned to see Gibbs at the table, opposite Liam O'Riley, who was looking both arrogant and squirrelly. Then again, most people came undone under Gibbs' famous Evil Eye.

"You're sitting there and telling me," Gibbs was saying. "That you killed your _best friend_ because of a _debt_ from two years ago?"

"Yeah!" Liam nodded as he leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed. "We were pals for all these years, and after I help him start over with more money and a passport, he acts like the debt never even happened? Miles got what he deserved!"

In the observation room, all eyes were back on Ziva, who was in tears, although they were angry.

"Miles hoodwinked me, yes, but Ella, Alison, and the baby lost him because he would not pay a _debt_ to a _friend?"_

"Are you going to be okay?" Tony asked her tentatively.

"If by 'okay,' do you mean will I go into the next room and strangle O'Riley with my bare hands," she said, wiping her tears. "I will refrain, and I promise all of you that. I just thought that by the time that it reached this point, it would make sense."

"Murder _never_ makes any sense, dear girl," Ducky said as they watched Gibbs get up and let in the officers who had been waiting out in the hallway for the okay to enter. "And that's coming from someone who has been with death as a profession for a _very_ long time."

Ziva nodded absently and then quickly moved because the door opened. Gibbs had joined them.

"Did you all see that?"

"We did, Gibbs." confirmed Ziva, quickly crossing the room and giving him a hug. "Thank you."

He hugged her back, glad (and not for the first time) that she was in his life because she was the age that his daughter would have been if she hadn't died. Nobody would ever replace Kelly because that was impossible, but Ziva was definitely lighting up his life the way Kelly had, so Gibbs couldn't help feeling fatherly towards her. He even liked to think that Shannon would've felt the same way about Ziva as he did… and also that Kelly and Ziva would've been friends.

He pressed an affectionate kiss to her forehead and even gave her a smile as he let go of her. "You're very welcome."

Ziva looked around at everyone in the room, the people who, in the last year, had really become her family when she wasn't even looking for one.

"Will you all help me pack up Miles' place and come to the burial?"

Now that the case was over, they had the next few days off to recharge. They were currently on Friday afternoon and wouldn't have to worry about the possibility of a new case until Monday morning.

"You got it, Ziva." Palmer told her as the others all voiced and nodded their agreement. "Anything for family."

Ziva smiled at him. "Thank you, Jimmy."

When everyone filed out a few moments later—eight people in a small space made claustrophobia set in quickly—Ziva brought up the rear in the orange corridor, and Abby fell back to talk to her.

"Ziva, I'll understand if you don't want to hang out anymore, and just see your babies."

Ziva stopped walking and put a hand on Abby's forearm, stopping her, too.

"Abby," she said in a kind tone. "Whatever it is that you alluded to earlier sounds very important, and you sound like you need a friend to share it with—I want to be that friend for you today and always. Plus, after everything that has happened recently, a night out with you, Ella, and Alison is exactly what I want and need."

Abby wanted to cry because she was already feeling topsy-turvy, and now, Ziva had hit the nail on the head without even realizing it.

She took some steadying breaths to calm herself. "Really?"

"Truly." Ziva linked one of her arms in Abby's as they resumed walking along. "We are going to collect the girls from their nanny's house after work. Have I told you of Bronwyn yet?"

Abby shook her head. "Nope, but what a _neat_ name! What's she like?"

"Very nice, extremely attractive, and she is even from Wales!"

 _"Wales?"_ Abby echoed, already fascinated. "How cool! Any more trivia facts to share?"

Ziva grinned mischievously. "She makes Tony very uneasy, much like a pesky little sister. She also gets into his head almost as fast as I do."

"Will you tell me a story about that?"

"Of course!"

And so Ziva did.


	11. Glad You Came

"Bronwyn, is Alison up yet?"

Bronwyn checked her watch and replied, "Mhm. One moment."

Ziva had brought along Abby to Bronwyn's house, and upon introducing them to each other, she was delighted to see them hit it off immediately, especially when her friends discovered that they both participated in local bowling leagues. She also decided that since Bronwyn got on so well with first Tony and now Abby, that introducing the all of the Llewellyns to her friends was now in order.

As Bronwyn left, Ziva turned to Abby to say something, only to see that she was looking lost in her own world about something and even fiddling with a chain around her neck. Ziva found that last part odd because Abby normally wore a spiked collar or necklace, depending on the style of her outfit, but never both. She also couldn't see what was on the other end of the chain because the rest of it was hidden down the front of Abby's dress.

"Ima!"

A tiny but excited voice brought Ziva back to reality, and she looked around to see that Ella Brave had wandered in.

"Come here!" Ziva beckoned to her. "I missed you!"

Ella Brave loved cuddles from Ziva, so she ran to her and snuggled close for a minute when she picked her up before pulling away and tilting her head to the side, curious.

"Why sad eyes now?"

Ziva kissed Ella Brave's forehead and nuzzled noses with her—holding her at that moment, instead of as opposed to earlier, when she'd dropped her off, was different because the little girl was her daughter now.

"No sad eyes, dear little friend—I am just very happy to see you."

Ella Brave breathed a sigh of relief. "Is Ladybug happy?"

Ladybug promptly kick Ziva in the spleen, but even still, Ziva gave Ella Brave a reassuring answer. "Your sister is _very_ happy right now. Would you like to know who else needs a hug?"

Ella Brave nodded seriously. "Yes!"

"Abby needs a hug today." Ziva turned towards her friend and guided Ella Brave's attention to her. "Will you give her a hug, please?"

Ella Brave lit up when she saw Abby, and leaned towards her, wanting to be held. Once again, Abby felt her heart both flutter and break as she thought of the secret she'd been sitting on.

But nevertheless, she was happy to hold Ella Brave.

"Hi, cutie pie!" Abby cooed. "I'm so happy to see you!"

"Me, too!" Ella Brave gave Abby a peck on the cheek. "You!"

Ziva happily watched the two as Abby engaged Ella Brave in a conversation. She didn't know what was going on in Abby's head, but she had a feeling that this was exactly what she needed.

"Ziva?"

Bronwyn had returned and was depositing Alison Joy into her arms.

"Here you go—one happy, wide-awake, and freshly changed baby girl. She'll be wanting her bottle soon, though."

"Well," Ziva chirped. "We will soon attend to that because we are about to go on a shopping trip that food and such things will be a part of."

"Ima!" Ella Brave called from Abby's arms. "We are going shopping?"

"Yes, we are, and Abby is going to come with us! How about you show her how you get ready to leave Nanny Bronwyn's house?"

Thrilled to have such an important task, Ella Brave occupied herself with it while Ziva and Bronwyn got Alison Joy completely ready to leave.

"We caught Miles' killer today, Bronwyn." Ziva told her friend.

"Who was it?"

"Liam."

Bronwyn shook her head and made the sign of the cross. "What a shame. Do I want to know?"

"It was petty, so it does not matter. What does is that we are packing up his place for him tomorrow and having a full Marine funeral on Sunday. Will you and your family help?"

"Of course—we'll help you however need it. Who is 'we,' though?"

"My team." Ziva explained as they put Alison Joy in her jacket and boots. "You have already met Tony and Abby, but it is about time that you have met the rest of them because…"

Her words trailed off as she felt a thrill of joy in her stomach at the thought of what she was going to say next.

"Because what?" Bronwyn prompted. "If you want me to keep it secret, I will."

Ziva had learned awhile ago that Bronwyn was a vault, so she proceeded to tell her what had happened earlier.

Overjoyed for her friend, Bronwyn gave Ziva's hand an affectionate squeeze. "I am so happy for you! If you were not in the picture, and this had happened, Mabli and I would have taken the girls in a heartbeat," (Mabli was Bronwyn's wife) "But they are going to be so very happy with you!"

Ziva smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Bronwyn. That means a lot."

Bronwyn winked. "You're quite welcome, and you are a great mother."

Their conversation came to an end when they heard, "Ima?"

Ella Brave and Abby had returned, and the little one was waddling beside her buddy, decked out in a parka, hat, mittens, and boots. She was waddling because everything she was wearing limited the full range of her movement.

"Me am ready! What 'bout Porc'pine?"

"She is also ready to go." Ziva said as Bronwyn helped her up and handed Alison Joy back to her. "Will you take Abby's hand? She will help you to the car."

Ella Brave jumped up and down, excited. "Let's go!"

* * *

In the spirit of good friendship, Abby picked up the tab for the girls' clothes and even fed Alison Joy her bottle while Ziva and Ella Brave tried on different dresses to wear to the funeral. Two stores and a trip to the food court later, Alison Joy had Abby so wrapped around her little finger that she would go to nobody but the goth. Ziva still wondered what was going on in Abby's head, so as they sat together and watched Ella Brave burn off her energy at the indoor playground, she decided to just start the conversation.

"Abigail Autumn Rose Scuito," Ziva began. "What is going on with you today? I know that you are a very affectionate with children because that is your way, but never have I seen you as affectionate with children as you are with mine."

Deciding not to ask how Ziva had even discovered her full name, Abby countered with a question of her own. "Does that bother you?"

"No, because Ella and Alison are needing all of the love that they can get right now, but I am concerned with you because you are also wearing a necklace in addition to your collar, and even though I saw you a few times today at work, you always hid the chain in your shirt before I could see what it was. You have also been fiddling with it."

Abby sighed and removed the chain, handing it to Ziva. "I got engaged last night!"

The ring was a vintage diamond engagement ring that was very beautiful and winked and shimmered in the overhead light. It also wasn't too far outside of Abby's wheelhouse of taste.

Ziva handed the ring back after a moment of examination. "Abby this is wonderful! Who proposed?"

Abby put the chain back around her neck and beamed. "You're looking at the future Abigail Autumn Rose McGee!"

"I have been wondering for ages when he was going to ask! Did you say yes to Tim?"

"Oh, absolutely—he's my soulmate and there is nobody besides him I want to be with for the rest of my life."

"But…?"

"Five minutes after that, I got a call from my doctor that I'd been waiting on for all day because I went to see her before work."

"What did she tell you, Abby?"

"I'm… thirteen weeks pregnant."

Ziva's wanted to hug Abby, but she she kept from it when she saw that even though she was happy, her expression was a little sad yet.

"Is this a good thing?" Ziva asked cautiously.

Abby gave Alison Joy an extra cuddle as she nodded. "Yes, because I'm older than I look, Ziva, and I thought I'd missed chance for a husband and kids altogether. The doctor also told me that I'm having twins."

"I am so pleased for you and Tim because you are like a sister to me and he has always been as good as a brother to me, but why am I sensing that there is a caveat?"

"Because there is—I've known for years that I carry a gene that could cause one or both of the babies to be born deaf."

"Oh, Abby…"

"I lucked out by learning how to sign when I was little because I have some deaf relatives and I've been prepping for this my entire adult life, just in case, and Tim is preparing, too, but we saw them this morning on the screen before work…"

"And that made it all feel more real, yes?"

"Yes, but I'm also scared."

"I cannot say that I blame you." Ziva admitted, thinking of her newfound relationship with Tony and the promise he'd made to her. "I will not begin to know what it is like to have a child who is different or one day could be, but I would still do as you and Tim are, and prepare for the possibility of one or two deaf children. I am sure you two already have more than enough love to give them."

Abby smiled and glided her hand over her petite bump, more apparent now that Ziva was are of it. "We're hopelessly in love with our kids, don't get me wrong, but of all the challenges I've ever faced alone or together with someone I care about, this is the biggest one ever."

"You speak sign language, yes?"

"I'm bilingual, and it's my second language."

Ziva had ten languages in her arsenal, making her a hyper-polyglot—a fact that she was immensely proud of. "It is my second language, as well. Does Tim know sign language?"

"Only English and French. I'll have to teach him."

"And anything you forget, _I_ shall teach him."

Abby suddenly felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "Thank you, Ziva! That's really nice of y—what's that noise?"

A light smacking sound could be heard in the din, and Ziva nodded to Alison Joy. The baby was making a pucker face and smacking her lips, much like a fish, and was reaching for Abby's hand. Abby gave Alison Joy her hand and turned goo when her little fingers curled rightly around hers and continue to smack her lips.

"She is blowing you kisses, Abby." Ziva told her.

"Aww." Abby propped Alison Joy up in the crook of her arm, simultaneously speaking and signing the next words to her. "I love you."

Alison Joy perked up, cast her teething toy aside and signed back.

Abby looked over at Ziva in surprise. "Alison signs?"

Ziva nodded proudly. "Just the basic things, but yes—I have been teaching her."

Abby returned her gaze to the baby and began fussing over her, promising her that she'd help teach her sign language, too. Alison Joy made happy noises, in love with all of the attention from her new friend.

Ziva watched the two of them interact, and as she did, she saw all of the fear that Abby had previously been harboring wash away, only to be replaced by love.

Abby was going to be a wonderful mother.

* * *

As Tony knocked on Ziva's door later that night, he had a duffle bag of his things to keep at her place (because she had invited him to bring his things at the last minute), along with a bag of yet more food because he'd been serious earlier about making her something to eat… and she seemed to really like his cooking, even telling him that Ladybug did, too.

Ziva called out that the door was open, and when Tony entered, he heard a sound that he'd been expecting at some point: Alison Joy was crying, and whatever was bothering her, she was extremely upset. Unfortunately, Ziva couldn't figure out what it was.

Tony saw the distress and quickly put his things away (and his gun in the safe by the door) and relieved Ziva of the squalling infant.

Just like magic, Alison Joy stopped crying and began yawning and rubbing her eyes, exhausted.

Ziva threw up her hands, exasperated. "Of _course_ she stills when abba-leh comes home! We have been back from our night with Abby for nearly an hour, and she was crying for the last thirty minutes because she wanted _you_ and not _me!"_

"Are you okay?" Tony asked carefully.

Ziva got to her feet and sighed, smiling quickly because she never had the willpower to stay dour when Tony was visiting. "I am fine because I love when you come home to us, and I am particularly thankful to have a grown-up to talk to because I thought I was going to lose my marbles."

"How is Ladybug?"

"Needing a proper name so I know how to call her when she is being obnoxious."

Tony winced. "She isn't a fan of Alison crying, huh?"

"Correct, and she has been kicking me for nearly twenty straight minutes, taking it out on my spleen."

"And where is Ella?"

"There." Ziva pointed. "She has been making like an ostrich."

Tony followed Ziva's direction to see Ella Brave crouching at the other end of the couch, her little rear in the air and her head hidden amongst a pile of pillows.

"Has she done a handstand yet?" Tony asked in amusement.

"Surprisingly, no. Will you remind her about breathing while I go change? I am still wearing what I wore to work."

"Take your time, Z. I'll take care of them."

Ziva kissed Tony on the cheek in thanks and headed in the direction of her bedroom, although she doubled back and hid just out of sight to see Tony still holding Alison Joy in one arm while playfully dangling Ella Brave upside down as he struck up a conversation with her about getting ready for bed.

Ziva couldn't wait for scenes like this every night.

* * *

When she returned, wearing comfortable clothes, she was very surprised to find Alison Joy asleep in her bassinet on the floor at the end of the couch, and Ella Brave nowhere in sight, presumably in her bed.

"They _both_ fell asleep?" Ziva asked in amazement as she sat with her beau. "I was gone for fifteen minutes!"

"It looks like your little night to wherever with Abby wore the kids right out. Is the baby still kicking?"

"Yes, but finally not my spleen."

"You said earlier that you wanted to talk to me about something important—maybe we should focus on that take your mind off the kicking?" Tony suggested.

Ziva gave a nod of agreement, but went at it like a freight train. "A few years ago, I was almost engaged."

Tony had a record scratch moment because he hadn't been expecting her to say anything like that. "R-really? What was his name?"

"Ibrahim Yosef, and our engagement was being arranged by my father and his. He just wanted into my family for the money and power."

"You're _wealthy?"_

Ziva blushed. "In Israel, yes. Here, I believe the term is well off."

"Gotcha. You saw through Ibrahim's plan and called it quits?"

"Much to the dismay of Ibrahim, his father, and my father, I broke things off altogether. I was nearly nineteen."

"Wow. I'm glad you got out of it."

"As am I."

Tony tugged on Ziva's hand, pulling her towards him so that she was on his lap, straddling him—they both seemed to like that position when having a one-on-one.

"Ziva, why are you telling me this?"

"Because when was talking with the director and the judge, we discussed a few different ways for me to become an American citizen so it will be easier for me to adopt the girls for good and stay here so I can become an NCIS agent."

"You want to be a full NCIS agent?"

"Mhm. What do you think?"

"That all of that working out would be an amazing opportunity."

"Speaking of amazing opportunities, my dear," Ziva slipped Tony's hands under her shirt so he could feel the baby move. "The best way for me to become a citizen is to marry one."

The pieces fell into places in Tony's head. "You mean… you and me?"

Ziva nodded and proceeded to tell Tony everything that had been explained to her earlier, including her time frame.

"I love you very, very much already, Tony, and I already do not want to imagine my life without you, even though we have not yet known each other for even two years." She told him. "I know that with me kissing you at work today as I did shows that, but I just had to _say_ it."

"I understand because I fell for you very quickly after you first arrived, and I can't imagine my life without you or the kids now. I want nothing more than this to be an every day thing… for the rest of our lives."

"You are saying that you would marry me, and not just to help me?"

"You're the absolute love of my life, Ziva David. I want to marry you, and I will ask you when the time is right, but how about we go on a few dates first?"

Ziva could hardly believe what she was hearing because she hadn't expected things to go so well, but she nodded. "That sounds _perfect."_

"Would you like me to hold you?" Tony asked when he noticed that his partner was physically trembling because of all of the emotion she was feeling. "You look like you could use a hug."

"Thank you, Tony, and I really could use a hug."

Ziva immediately changed positions in Tony's lap so that she was leaning against him. She snuggled close and relaxed when Tony found a blanket and cast it over them. Before long, Ziva felt Tony's wam hands against her bare skin again as the baby moved around, getting comfortable.

The couple sat quietly together, listening to the beginnings of a rainfall outside as they took joy in the fact that even though nothing had been officiated, they were going to be spending the rest of their lives together.

That was Heaven for both of them.


	12. Transitions

After dropping Ella Brave and Alison Joy off at the babysitter's house the next morning, Ziva and Tony went to Miles' place to start packing it up, although they spent the ride there discussing a key aspect of their future: living together and buying a house together. Neither had any qualms about it, and in the end, Ziva's only conditions were that she spend the night at Tony's place at least once, and that wherever they ended up living, the house had to be big enough to not only accommodate the children they already had, but also any others that joined their family because it was already a forgone conclusion that they were going to have more kids a few years down the road.

The couple arrived at the apartment at nine-thirty, and they worked together to get things organized so that by the time Gibbs, Jenny, Abby, McGee, Ducky, and Palmer arrived at eleven, everybody had something to do in way of helping. They also told they others about their relationship, although they chose not to talk about their plans for an engagement because even though Jenny knew, they still wanted to keep it from the other five just a little bit longer so they could keep it to themselves.

But all in all, it was an interesting morning.

* * *

After Ziva finished packing up Miles' office and getting all of his affairs order—the one project she'd insisted on doing by herself—she checked on everyone else preoccupied with different tasks.

The only person she didn't immediately see was Abby, but she found her soon enough in the nursery. She was on the floor, surrounded by packed boxes, and it looked like everything was packed, except for the girls' beds and clothes.

When Ziva found Abby, she saw that her friend had two of Alison Joy's onesies in her hands and was holding them against her middle. She was more confident about her pregnancy now, so she was happily wearing an outfit that showed off her bump, but she seemed lost in thought about something.

Ziva said her friend's name softly. "Abby?"

The goth looked up and smiled when she saw the newcomer and beckoned to her. "Ziva, hi! Did you finish packing up the office?"

"Indeed." she replied as she came closer. "You appear to have made really good progress. Is it just the clothes and sleeping spaces left?"

Abby nodded. "Yep, and we can leave the beds and things for the boys to dismantle, but will you join me?"

"Yes, but," Ziva nodded towards Abby's middle. "Have you realized what you are doing?"

Abby looked down and blushed before folding up the onesies and putting them into the nearest empty box.

"I feel a lot better after the chat we had last night."

Ziva pulled out a few armloads of Ella Brave's clothes from the closet and put them down on the floor in front of her friend.

"That is wonderful." Ziva eased herself onto the floor, grunting slightly as Ladybug delivered a pissed off kick. _"You_ are getting up next, though."

"I can do that!" Abby began folding a few dresses. "Talking to you helped me get a huge weight off my chest, and I'm so glad because Tim and I are going to focus on the next part of starting our family."

"Purchasing a house?"

"Mhm. We aren't sure where yet, though."

"What if we end up turning into neighbors?"

"Pardon?" Abby asked in amusement. "Is there something you want to share? About you and Tony, perhaps?"

Realizing that she'd accidentally put her foot in her mouth, Ziva let out a Hebrew curse before asking, "Am I really _that_ transparent?"

"Only when it comes to your children… and Tony."

"Tell _no one,_ but some time before the baby is born, Tony and I are going to move in together and also buy a house."

Abby let out a delighted squeal. "Oh, I'm so happy! What if…"

Her words trailed off as she giggled at a thought that had suddenly popped into her head.

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "Abigail, finish that thought. Out loud."

"What if one of my kids end marrying one of yours?"

"Then we shall be even _more_ bonded for life than we already are." Ziva winked. "I quite like the thought of that."

"So do I." Abby agreed. "So do I."

* * *

With everybody's help, Miles' apartment was packed up less than a day, and everything—from items to be donated, to the items that needed to be kept—were all in their proper places. Relieved was the word on Ziva's mind when she saw that they were done.

She also put together a small box of personal memorabilia that had belonged to Miles and Moira, just in case any of their children got curious about them when they were older.

At the end of the day, Ziva went to bed thankful that everything had gone so smoothly and that the only thing left to get through was Miles' funeral.

* * *

It went by in a blur the next day and Ziva was feeling thankful again because other than the people she had arrived with and her ex-boyfriend's former CO, she didn't know anyone else at the funeral; she wanted to leave as quickly as she could so she could put this behind her.

However, when the flag presenter gave her the folded up American flag and she set it in her lap, Ziva almost lost her composure, but only because she was remembering back to the funerals for her mother and her sister—they'd both died within days of each other. Ziva got through it by Tony holding her hand and promising her that they'd spend the next few hours kid-free and alone.

When the funeral was finally over and people began to leave, Ziva's family powwowed around her.

"Are you going to to be okay?" Gibbs asked her.

"Yes," she turned to the others. "And thank you all, for coming today. It means a lot."

"Anything for family." said McGee.

Abby spoke up. "I know Bronwyn and her family already left, but Tim and I are happy to watch Ella and Alison for a few hours, if you like."

Ziva answered immediately. "Yes, please."

Realizing that Ziva had to be more tired than she was letting on, Tony lifted Ella Brave out of Gibbs' arms and into his own to have a conversation with her.

"Hey, kid." he told her. "Do you want to go hang out with Abby and Tim for awhile?"

"Porc'pine comin'?"

"Yes, she is."

Ella Brave titled her head to the side. "What 'bout you and Ima?"

"She and I are going to do something else for awhile."

"I can hug her?"

"You bet."

Wanting nothing more at that moment than a hug, Ziva happily hugged her daughter. For someone who wasn't even three yet, Ella Brave gave amazing hugs.

"You will be good for our friends, yes?"

Ella Brave gave a serious answer. _"So_ good, Ima."

Ziva smiled lovingly at the little one. "Then we will see you both later."

After Ziva and Tony saw their children off and said goodbye to the rest of their friends, they got into Tony's car but didn't get far.

Out of seemingly nowhere, Ziva had burst into tears.

Having done a lot of research on women in their second trimester of pregnancy, Tony quickly decided that the best tactic was to get Ziva calm and then cater to her desires. Within reason.

He turned to her. "It's okay, to cry, Z—just get it _all_ out."

She wiped her tears and took a few steadying breaths before speaking.

"The thing is, my dear, is I am not even crying over _Miles."_

"No? Then who?"

"Tali and my mother. Their funerals were the last I attended of someone very close to me."

"How many years ago were they?"

"Five."

Tony held Ziva's hand and kissed it. "My mom passed away when I was eight. It was cancer."

Ziva's heart lurched in sympathy. "I am _so_ sorry, Tony. You still speak to your father, yes?"

"No, actually. He sent me to boarding school not long after mom died, and we haven't been the same since, even after all these years. He isn't exactly the best influence for the girls right now because he's a bit of a con man. Do you know that term?"

"Very well. I ran into several when I was younger and liked to teach a lesson to the ones whom I found particularly bothersome."

Tony arched an eyebrow. "You mean…?"

Ziva mimicked a boxing move. "I have been told before that I have a 'mean right hook.' This is a good thing?"

 _"Very._ We need to have a  Rocky marathon."

"I have actually seen them all." Ziva said proudly. "I believe we were talking about your father, though."

"Yeah, but all that's left to say is that it's best to hope it's a few more years before he crosses our paths. Trust me on that one."

"I do. Would he at least approve at me?"

"Oh, yes."

"What of your mother? Would she have?"

"To the point where if she, Tali, and your mom were all still here, she would have helped them set us up on a date."

That drew a smile from Ziva and she kissed her beau on the lips. "I am so glad that you are in my life now, Tony. I do not know that I could live without you."

Before Tony could say anything to that (and he wanted to), Ziva moved her hands to her middle suddenly, gliding them over a spot in the top right hand corner.

"We are hungry, Tony, and Ladybug is letting me know it."

"Well, how's this? How about we get out of here and go to my place? It's closer than yours, and we can eat, watch a movie, whatever you want. You can even borrow some of my clothes if you want to change out of that dress and those heels."

"That sounds delightful."

Tony grinned, pleased with himself and when he saw that Ziva was getting sleepy, he said, "Close your eyes, babe. I'll wake you when we get there."

Ziva buckled her seatbelt and settled into her seat. "Okay…"

By the time Tony started the car and they exited the cemetery for the main road, Ziva was fast asleep.


	13. At Tony's

Tony's apartment was a glorified man cave, but it was actually surprisingly neat and clean.

The layout was one big circle with an open floor space, and when you first entered, you were in a living room area that featured shelves and shelves of books and DVDs. The room also featured a number of different furniture pieces that looked very comfortable and even balanced out the state-of-the-art entertainment system that took up a section of the far wall. Near a door that led to what appeared to be the kitchen was a beautiful piano that was just begging to be played. Besides the kitchen, there were separate doors that led to a bedroom, a bathroom, and what looked like an office area, each space just off the living room. Everything was more on the upscale side, Ziva noticed, and it suggested that like herself, Tony came from a lot of money.

That wasn't the first immediate detail that Ziva had focused on, though.

"Oh, Tony! Who is _this?"_

On a built-in wall shelf next to a small decorative box where Tony kept his gun, sat a goldfish bowl that was lined with tiny pink pebbles. There was also a small brick building with a familiar acronym painted across it—NCIS—along with the bowl's occupant, and large fat goldfish. As if it knew the others were there, it began swimming circles around its toy, showing off.

"I did not know that you have a pet!"

Tony quickly fed his fish, even cooing over it for moment before turning to Ziva and explaining in a bashful tone, "I got her after Kate died and named her after her. Do you think that's weird?"

Ziva shook her head. "That is actually very adorable. We will find her a special place when we move."

Tony grinned, but when he saw that despite the brief nap Ziva had had in the car, she was looking a little tired on her feet yet, so he helped her out of her shoes and jacket, putting them away for her before he led her to the bedroom.

"The bed is a bit small," Ziva said as she sat on it. "But I like it."

"Well, if you end up spending the night," Tony said, shuffling his feet like a nervous little boy talking to his playground crush. "It's all yours—I just got a new futon for the living room that is very comfortable."

"I could, of course, join you." Ziva purred.

Her tone was clearly insinuating other things, and Tony thought he misheard Ziva with what she said after that.

"I-I beg your pardon?" he stuttered.

Ziva sat on the edge of the bed and stuck her legs out, wiggling her toes. "I said, 'Will you help me take off my stockings?' I can even get them started."

"O-okay…"

He watched as her fingers disappeared briefly up the skirt of her dress, tugging at the nylon material as she maneuvered it out into plain view as far as she could reach before her belly got in the way.

Tony completed the task, but he became so quiet that Ziva knew that her companion was focusing on more than that.

"Tony, I have only _one_ rule about today."

He snapped out of his reverie when he realized he was being spoken to and laid the stockings over the back of a nearby chair.

"Hm? What is it?"

"You may touch me, hold me, kiss me—all of that, because we are a couple now, but no sex. Not today."

Tony was a little taken aback. "How did you know I was thinking _that?"_

"Because you are man with a pulse," she smirked as she undid her long hair from its confines and shook it loose. "And you are my best friend whom I can read like a book. I want to wait until we do not have anything hanging over us."

"I can respect that, but at least let me do this…"

He leaned forward and planted a searing kiss on Ziva's lips. She melted into it, and when Tony moved closer, even putting a knee up on the bed and supporting the back of Ziva's head with one hand, Ziva leaned back on her hands to support herself. She hadn't felt this alive or happy in too long.

"I love you, Tony." she breathed happily when they drew apart. "So, so, so very much."

"I can't wait to get married."

"Nor can I."

Taking advantage of them being alone, Tony kissed Ziva more, moving from her lips to her throat to her cleavage, the latter of which was exposed by her low-cut dress. Abuzz was the word that came to Ziva's mind, but it felt very, very good, and if this was a glance of what Tony was like as a lover, then she couldn't wait until the next time, when she was ready to let him go all the way.

"You know," Ziva said, gently pushing him away. "I am not the _only_ one who needs kisses."

She laid back against the pillows and hiked back her dress, exposing her bare legs and underpants, but more importantly, her beautiful burgeoning baby bump.

"Give your daughter kisses—we do not want her to be left out."

Tony immediately joined Ziva on the bed, laying on his frontside in between Ziva's legs and pressing gentle kisses to the bump. When Ladybug began moving and stretching out in response to the affection, Tony began talking to her.

"Hey, Ladybug—it's your abba-leh here, and I just wanted to tell you once again that I can't wait to meet you. Hopefully, I'll be able to teach you or one of your sisters about loving movies when you get bigger, but I promise we'll start you out with all of the princess movies you can handle because you are definitely our baby princess."

Tony covered the bump in another flurry of kisses.

"I love you so much, Ladybug." Tony paused and laid an ear to Ziva's bump and pretended to listen for a moment. "Yeah, I think that's a good idea, too."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "And just what are you having a chat with our daughter about?"

"The fact that she needs a name."

"Yes, I suppose we cannot call her 'Ladybug' and such things forever. How did you get _your_ name?"

"I was named after my dad. Promise me that if or when we have a son that we _don't_ name him Anthony Dashiell DiNozzo the third."

"I promise."

Tony sat up and replied, "How did Ella and Alison get their names?"

"Their parents wanted them so have something cute for when they were little, but also something that won't hinder them when they grow up and start looking for jobs."

"Gotcha. How did you get _your_ name?"

Ziva smiled. "Where I come from, just about everybody is named after a deceased relative in their family—it's a very, very old Jewish tradition. Talia was named for our mother's older sister, and Ari was named for his mother's father. I was named for my mother's mother."

"Do you know what Ziva means?"

"Brilliance or brightness."

"And that's perfect for you because you're both brilliant _and_ bright."

Now Ziva was blushing. "Thank you, my dear. If it is alright, I would like to incorporate both of the naming traditions, especially the one from Israel because that one is very important to me."

Because of his long career in law enforcement, Tony was very open-minded about different beliefs and religions, but because this request was coming from the woman who was going to be his wife, it felt even more special.

"I like that idea a lot, actually—let's do it."

Ziva beamed. "My mother was called Rivka—that is the Hebrew version of Rebecca."

"What does Rebecca mean?"

"Servant of God, and my mother was actually very religious for her entire life, so she was extremely proud of her name."

"It's beautiful." Tony said honestly. "It's also easy to spell: R-I-V-K-A, right?"

"Mhm." Ziva nodded. "Tell me, what was your mother's name?"

"Faith Evelyn DiNozzo."

Ziva's heart fluttered. "Ella and Alison's full names both contain virtues, but I do not know of any virtues more basic and meaningful that faith. In fact, that is the _director's_ middle name, as I recall."

"We could use Faith for her, since she's like a mom to you."

"I like the thought of that, so long as we can use Faith to honor your mother, also."

Tony looked at her with heart eyes. "And I thought I loved you four seconds ago."

"I take it that that means that yes, we are using the name Faith?"

"Yes. Yes, it does."

"Then we're at the matter of her middle name now. I have a name that I have adored since I was a child because it is Hebrew in origin and also very adorable. It is also the name of one of our friends."

"Abigail?" Tony guessed.

"Correct, and it means father's joy, which works very well because of how much you enjoy being a father now."

Tony was instantly filled with so much love that he gave Ziva another brain-frying kiss.

"We have Ladybug's actual name now: Rivka Faith for her first name, and Abigail for the middle, so she's our little Rivka Faith Abigail."

Ziva gently corrected him. "Rivka Faith Abigail _DiNozzo."_

Tony was genuinely surprised by that last part. "You want to give her my last name?"

"You _are_ her father now, but you also have been from the moment I realized you were interested in getting to know her. You have also been Ella's and Alison's father from the moment you began bonding with them. When we get married, will you formally adopt them with me? Will you adopt the baby, too?"

Tony didn't have to think twice about that became because he didn't know how this day could get any better. "Absolutely! So now we've got Ella Brave Hope, Alison Joy Constance, and Rivka Faith Abigail, and their last names will all be DiNozzo?"

"Yes! That is all correct!"

Tony suddenly hung his head as the gravity of his new position of being a father truly hit him. "Oh, my God—I have _three_ _daughters?_ Does this mean that I'm going to be the dad who sits on the porch with a shotgun, waiting to scare off their dates? And speaking of dating, Ella, Alison, and Rivka aren't allowed to date until they're thirty!"

"Do not worry yourself into hair loss or get ahead of yourself, alright?" Ziva laughed. "And if anyone is to be father on the porch with a shotgun, it is to be Gibbs."

"You just said 'is to be' twice in the same sentence. Do you know something about him and the director that I don't?"

Ziva chose her words carefully because she'd been observing a few changes in the director's personality over the past few weeks that the director had no doubt noticed in her. The officer was sure that her friend was also expecting a visit from the stork, but didn't know how to bring it up because it seemed that if she was expecting she had no idea, otherwise she would have stopped having her morning coffee already.

"Other than that it is just a matter of time before they admit their feelings for each other, no. Oof…"

Fed up with Ziva not moving Rivka Faith kicked her furiously.

"Rivka says, "Time for up!" and she has the correct idea." Ziva said. "I would also like to put on something more comfortable."

Tony got off the bed and stretched before pulling Ziva into an upright position and helping her off the bed.

"The closet is over there." he pointed to a door against one wall. "It's a walk-in, and you can wear whatever you want—what are you doing, babe?"

Ziva had turned around so that her back was to him. "The blinds are closed on the window, yes?"

"Yes. Would you like me to undo your zipper?"

"Yes, please."

Tony fulfilled his girlfriend's request and then watched as she lifted her arms out of her sleeves and shimmied out of her dress. The material slid effortlessly down her body, pooling at her feet. Ziva was now in just her underthings, and though sh had her back to her beau, she could feel his eyes on her.

"Rivka, and I are still hungry." she said as she walked towards the closet. "Will you please get something started? I will join you shortly."

Again, Tony was in a reverie, but he snapped out of it very quickly. "Right—food. Anything in particular that you want?"

"Surprise me."

* * *

After meal that they worked together to make, the couple sat together and ate it on the futon, watching TV. She was in a borrowed pair of boxers and a long-sleeved button-down shirt, but nothing else, and he was in shorts, a tank top and a hoodie. White Christmas was playing, but it was only on for background noise. In fact, when Tony got up to go the bathroom at one point, Ziva put the TV on mute and walked over to the piano.

It was a beautiful black Steinway grand piano that Ziva knew hadn't come cheap. The extravagance of the instrument alone made Ziva wonder just how much money Tony really had.

"Do you play?"

Tony had returned and was watching curiously.

Ziva bobbed her head in a nod. "Indeed—Mossad tactics are not _all_ I was trained in in Israel. Had I not gone down that road, I would have gone to _Julliard_ to pursue music. That was where my mother was educated."

I'm learning something new about you every day, Tony thought as he approached the piano and put a hand on it. "I've played since I was a kid and I found this beauty in an antique store when I first moved here from Baltimore, and I restored it with some of the money from my trust fund that I inherited fifteen years ago."

"If you do not mind my asking," Ziva said as sat down on the piano bench and played a few keys, warming up. "How much money do you have?"

"Enough to easily take care of us and all of our kids for the rest of our lives."

Instead of answering verbally, Ziva nodded and sang a few soft notes to herself, tuning her voice as a tune began to form on the piano.

Then she began to sing, looking her love in the eyes as she did.

 _Wise men say_

 _Only fools rush in_

 _But I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Shall I stay?_

 _Would it be a sin_

 _If I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Like a river flows_

 _Surely to the sea_

 _Darling, so it goes_

 _Some things are meant to be_

 _Take my hand,_

 _Take my whole life, too_

 _For I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Like a river flows_

 _Surely to the sea_

 _Darling, so it goes_

 _Some things were meant to be_

 _Take my hand,_

 _Take my whole life, too_

 _For I can't help falling in love with you_

When Ziva was finished, she smiled up at Tony, who had been completely spellbound the whole time. To him, Ziva's voice was already magical by itself, but when she sang, she was on a different plane altogether.

"What do you think?" she asked him. "All of it is true."

At that particular moment, Tony was doing everything he could to not get down on one knee and propose on the spot—he still had a few things to take care of before that could happen.

Instead, he sat beside her and kissed her. "I think that that was a very beautiful performance, and I'll always remember it."

Ziva smiled and then immediately arched her back as she felt the baby turn a cartwheel. "Rivka liked the music, too, so I will play it again for her."

Tony voiced his approval and watched his lovely wife-to-be give an encore performance of what was sure to be their wedding song.

As he felt himself getting lost in the sound of Ziva's enchanting voice all over again, he began to wonder when would be the best time to find Gibbs and ask his permission to marry Ziva.

Hopefully it would be soon.


	14. Rule 12 Again

Only because they had to relieve Abby and McGee of Ella Brave and Alison Joy, Ziva and Tony left his place for hers after a few quiet hours of a night in. The girls had had such a fun time, though, that they both went to bed without any fuss.

Later, when Ziva was getting ready for bed, she realized that it felt very empty.

But she solved that problem quickly.

* * *

"Tony?"

"Hm?"

Ziva had found her beau ready for bed and stretched out on the couch in the front room, watching TV as he always did before falling asleep.

When he realized that Ziva was talking to him, he turned off the TV and looked over at her, only to have his heart jump into his throat—she was wearing a nearly see-through nightgown, and her hair was free of the braid she'd been sporting earlier, leaving it long, falling down her back and very frizzy, the very style that she was always wearing when she appeared to Tony in his dreams.

"Come to bed with me." she held out a hand to him. "Please."

Tony was already powerless to resist Ziva, so he got up and joined her, quickly taking her hand.

"Are you sure?" he asked as they headed down the hallway.

"We _are_ going to be married," Ziva reasoned as their fingers intertwined. "So we might as well start practicing getting used to being comfortable in a bed together for nights like this one, as well as nights where the no-sex rule does _not_ apply."

"Do you know when that will happen?"

Ziva let go of Tony's hand as they entered the bedroom and motioned towards the bed. They worked together to pull back the pillows and blankets before crawling under the covers and turning off the light.

"Soon." Ziva told Tony in response to his question. "Very soon."

She kissed him on the lips and smiled lovingly at him, in awe as she was every day that he still wanted to be with her and have a future with her, despite all of the baggage that she carried.

"I love you."

"And _I_ love _you._ I could _never_ stop." Tony returned Ziva's kiss. "Good night, Z."

She yawned sleepily and snuggled as close to Tony as her distended middle would allow. She even closed her eyes when Tony draped an arm over her backside, placing a hand in the small of her back.

"Good night, Tony."

They both fell asleep quickly after that, and while Ziva dreamed of it being a few days year down the road and that she was telling her daughters they were getting a brother, Tony drifted off into slumber wondering yet again how and when he was going to ask Gibbs for Ziva's hand in marriage.

Little did he know that the opportunity was going to present itself to him very soon.

* * *

The following morning was pretty routine for the family, and things didn't really get interesting until Ziva and Tony got to work. Upon arriving at their floor, the elevator doors opened and they made to get off, but were stopped when they saw Gibbs and Jenny. They had been waiting for them, and without word, boarded the lift.

"Do I need to know what is happening right now?" Ziva queried.

Jenny pressed a particular button on the elevator button panel, prompting the doors to slide open.

"We just need to borrow Tony for a few minutes. Don't worry."

"Alright." Ziva stepped off the lift and looked at her friend. "Just do not let Gibbs frighten Tony _too_ much, Jen."

Promising to do her best, Jenny pressed the same button on the panel and and the doors closed.

Ziva decided that it would be best to put whatever was happening out of her mind, so she dropped her things off at her desk and used the stairs to go down to the lower levels of the building. She wanted to see if Abby had arrived yet.

Back in the elevator, Gibbs brought things to a halt—literally—when he flipped the 'stop elevator' switch and he turned to Tony, eyebrows raised and arms crossed.

He said, "We've been watching you for the past few days, DiNozzo, and it looks like you have something on your mind concerning Ziva."

Jenny added, "We think we know what it is, but we need to hear you say it. Talk."

Tony laughed nervously. "I've only ever imagined having this conversation with Gibbs, but I guess it works with you, too, director, since together, you and Gibbs are Ziva's surrogate parents and I don't know her dad because he lives on the other side of the world…"

His words trailed off when he realized that both of his commanding officers were both looking at him with identical 'skip on down' expressions on their faces. Taking that cue, Tony cleared his throat and tried again.

"Meeting Ziva has been the _best_ thing that's _ever_ happened to me, and I can't imagine the rest of my life without her or any of the kids; I was hoping I could have a blessing or else your permission—whatever you want to call it—to officially propose to her. And this is _not_ just because she wants to be a citizen; she's the love of my life, and we want to spend the rest of our lives together."

Jenny and Gibbs both softened up immediately—this was exactly what they'd been expecting, but hearing Tony be so sincere when they were used to him being such a joker made them both realize that their favorite agent from Baltimore, who was as good as a son to them both, had finally grown up at last.

Jenny answered first. "Of _course_ you have our blessing, Tony! Do you know Ziva's ring size yet?"

"Yes, actually." Tony responded, surprised his knees hadn't given out.

"Then allow me to offer this advice about rings—Ziva prefers wearing silver over gold, except for when it comes to her necklace, and she also loves purple."

"Good to know." Tony turned to Gibbs. "Boss?"

To Tony's amazement, Gibbs gave him a genuine smile and even a pat on the cheek.

"You _definitely_ have our blessing." he restarted the lift. "It took you long enough to come ask us, but I'm really proud you did."

Tony just laughed nervously again and when the doors opened, he bid the other two and left quickly.

When he was gone, Gibbs pulled his wallet out from his jacket pocket and extracted a few bills, counting them before putting them into Jenny's outstretched hand.

"You were correct that McGee would come asking about Abby before Tony came asking about Ziva. Here's your fifty bucks, and with a little interest since I didn't pay up right away."

Jenny happily pocketed the money. In a friendly bet on a day where she'd noticed McGee being squirrlier than usual, she'd proposed to Gibbs that McGee would come to the house that night to come ask for a blessing to marry Abby. Just to prove it, Jenny even went home with Gibbs, and sure enough, McGee showed up almost exactly an hour later. Jenny's presence had thrown McGee for a loop and he ended up asking both of them for their blessing to propose, even showing them a picture of the ring he'd already gotten for Abby. Gibbs ended up being short on cash that night, so that was why he'd even thrown in a little extra, but the money in the director's pocket had been won fair and square.

"Tony, Ziva, Tim, and Abby are all as good as kids to you and I. Does that make you and I surrogate parents to them?"

"Yeah, I guess it _does_ make us their surrogate parents." Gibbs mused. "I've always wanted to be a dad again, and I know Kelly would have loved them all."

While they'd been talking, the doors had closed, so he opened them and stepped out. When he saw that his companion wasn't beside him, he turned back to see that she hadn't moved.

"You comin'?" he asked her.

Jenny shook her head. "Not right now."

"Are you okay?"

"Mhm. Don't worry about me."

"Alright, then. I'll catch you later."

He turned around and left just as the doors close again.

Jenny blew out a breath and looked down at her middle, resting one hand on the underside and the under and the other on the top, framing it in her hands.

"I know, I know—I missed my chance." Jenny sighed. "I'll tell daddy about you before the end of the day if I don't chicken out again."

Just yesterday, Jenny had realized that as a result of her and Gibbs breaking Rule 12 almost twelve weeks prior on her birthday, she was pregnant. She was thrilled to pieces, but still getting used to the idea that something she'd given up on was actually happening.

"But it's time to focus." Jenny pressed the down button on the button panel and the elevator descended to the lower levels of the building. "Let's go see what Auntie Abby is up to."

* * *

Jenny was very fond of Abby and cared about her well-being as much as she cared about Ziva's, and in turn, Abby happily reciprocated the friendship. Jenny was also the first person whom Abby had told about her pregnancy, although how that had happened was another story altogether.

Imagine her surprise when she went down to the lab and found that Ziva had already made it down and was chatting merrily with Abby. The two friends had their hands plastered over Ziva's big belly, laughing and commenting as they felt the baby move around, but when they saw Jenny, they both dropped their hands and immediately looked sharp.

"Director!" Abby said in surprise. "Did you need something from one us?"

"Nothing work related, so you and Ziva can chill out."

They both relaxed immediately and Ziva asked, "Then what was it that brought you down here?"

"The need of attention, I guess." Jenny took a huge breath and slowly exhaled. "I've got to tell someone before I lose my nerve again—I'm pregnant!"

Abby and Ziva both expressed their joy and hugged Jenny, although once they both let go of her, Ziva was grinning smugly.

Jenny saw straight through her. "Cough it up, Ziva!"

"I had a strong feeling about you also being with child." she turned to Abby. "What is the expression?"

"Mother's instinct!" Abby cheerfully supplied.

Ziva turned back to Jenny. "It was mother's instinct."

Jenny smiled in amusement. "I'm glad you two are excited because that might help me gather the courage to tell Jethro."

"He doesn't know yet?!" Abby cried.

"I'm afraid not."

"And why not?" Ziva sassed, putting her hands on her hips. "Jen, I am not sure if you have noticed, but you _are_ showing a little bit."

Jenny raked her nails lightly across the lower part of her middle, the one part of her body that was responsible for her clothes feeling more snug with each passing day. "I only just found out last night when I was alone, thank you, and I've been chickening out every time I've been around Jethro so far this morning."

Remembering how long it had taken her to tell anyone about her own pregnancy, Ziva became sympathetic. "I am quite sure you will find the courage before long, and until then, Abby and I will not say a word to Gibbs, nor anyone else."

"Thank y—"

Jenny stopped talking suddenly and looked towards the open door of the lab—she'd heard the familiar ding of the elevator door. Ziva and Abby followed her example, as well, and fell silent. It was a good thing, too, because the new arrival turned out to be Gibbs.

He immediately knew something was up because his lover, along with both of the women he loved like they were his own flesh and blood, were either trying too hard to act innocent of something or else looking like the cat that had eaten the canary.

"Do I even _want_ to know?" he finally asked.

Their answers were very quick.

"Uh-uh!"

"Not right now, Jethro."

"I shall stay out of this one."

Deciding not to press the matter, he sighed and shook his head.

"Well, don't any of you answer your phones? We've got a case; let's go! Chop-chop!"

Ziva and Jenny left quickly with Gibbs bringing up the rear and Abby calling after all of them to be safe because she'd heard rumors of snow in the forecast.

Oh boy, Ziva thought as she, Jenny, and Gibbs filed back out the elevator. This is going to be a long day.


	15. December

Three weeks passed after the morning Tony came asking for a blessing to marry Ziva, and quite a few happened.

For starters, at this point, Ziva was now six months pregnant, and was definitely showing for it and feeling it. Everyone was also at the mercy of her crazy mood swings and bizarre cravings now, and they learned to roll with it and humor her, or else just stay out of her way.

As for Abby and Jenny, since they both had their own offices, they were left to their own devices most of the time and they were happy. Both of them were also finally feeling completely comfortable with their expectant conditions, and once Jenny finally got past her nerves, she told Gibbs that they were going to be parents, the rest of the team felt like they were in the Twilight Zone because after that, Gibbs became a lot nicer more than they were used to him being.

Ella Brave and Alison Joy had also adjusted very well to life with Ziva and Tony as their parents, thrilled that they were there parents now and that they loved them the way parents were supposed to love their children. The girls adjusted even faster when both Ziva's and Tony's places were packed up and they all moved as a family to a very nice house in a family neighborhood. And any time there was a discussion to be had about Rivka Faith's nursery, Ella Brave was always happy to participate.

Life was great.

Ziva and Tony still hadn't had a night where the 'no-sex' rule hadn't applied, and he still hadn't proposed to her, but only because of all of the changes that were happening in their lives.

Plus, Christmas (and Ella Brave's third birthday) was fast approaching.

* * *

"All I'm _saying,_ Ziva, is that now we to wait another _year_ to throw a party for Ella because her birthday is in less than a _week!"_

Ziva shuddered. "Then it will be another year I am spared from Pin The Tail On The Donkey, and other such games. At least Ella does not have the patience or coordination to swing a stick at a piñata."

"She'd probably untie it and then do everything short of stomping on it or hitting it to get it open."

"I will give you that one."

Tony laughed. "But before we get ahead of ourselves: does Ella even have any friends?"

"Yes, but—"

A familiar voice interrupted them. "What are you two yammering about? This is a _crime scene!"_

Ziva and Tony were quickly brought back to reality. They had just been walking from where they'd parked the truck to the crime scene, which today was in an alley next to a nightclub. The couple was the last of the team to arrive, and, ignoring their boss' glare, they crossed under the crime scene tape.

Before Ziva could go about her usual crime scene assignment, however, Ducky walked up to her.

"Ziva, we found an ID on the victim, but it's all written in Hebrew; you're the only one who can read it."

She took the ID from him and read it, but she barely processed it when she felt a wave of cold fear overtake her body.

"Ziva," Ducky asked cautiously. "What are you thinking?"

"Where is the body?"

"Over there." He pointed to a spot just further down the alley. "It's with Mister Palmer."

Quickly but carefully, Ziva headed over to the spot to find Palmer just pulling a sheet over the victim's body.

"Jimmy," Ziva said when her friend saw her. "Please uncover him."

Knowing better than to say no, Palmer did as he was told and Ziva stepped closer to the body to take a look. When she saw the dead man's face, she was unable to help herself, but a small shriek escaped her lips.

Tony, Gibbs, and McGee all stopped what they were doing and hurried over.

"What's wrong?" Tony asked.

Ziva pointed pointed to the man on the ground. "Tony, _that_ is Ibrahim."

"Oh, no…"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow and asked Ziva, "Who was he to you?"

Ziva turned from Ibrahim to her boss. "He was the man whom I was almost engaged to in what feels another lifetime ago."

Palmer covered Ibrahim's body again and stood. "When was the last time you saw him, Ziva?"

"Five years ago, at my mother's funeral in Israel. I have not seen him since, but last I heard, he was being groomed to be the next director of The Mossad. It is complicated as to why I never let the engagement happen, but his parents and brother have never forgiven me."

"So you wouldn't know why he'd be here?"

"No, and his parents, Mohammed and Salma, or his brother, Abdul, will have probably followed him here, so be on your g—"

All of a sudden, she'd stopped talking and tilted her head to the side, listening for a sound that she'd suddenly heard there in the alley. It was very out of place and made her heart positively drop.

"Hear something, Ziva?" asked Gibbs.

She pressed a finger to her lips and made a soft hushing noise, listening intently.

A few seconds later, she heard the sound again and followed it to an area a few feet away, just behind a dumpster. Her heart dropped even further—she found herself looking at a stroller with a baby inside!

When the baby saw Ziva, it arched its back, wanting out of the stroller and lifted its arms up to her, desperate for contact and warmth.

Ziva immediately bent down and undid the straps and scooped the baby up, making sure to wrap the baby up in the blanket it was laying on.

"Do not worry, dear little friend, alright?" Ziva murmured, holding the baby close. "You are safe and warm now. Yes, you are."

Although still shivering, the baby quieted and snuggled to close to Ziva, who walked back to the others in somewhat of a daze.

"That's a baby." Palmer said blankly before wincing as Gibbs gave him a head slap.

Ziva spoke softly. "This must be Ibrahim's little one…"

Ducky added, "But you haven't seen him in half a decade, so you would have no way of knowing that he's married with a child."

Everybody stared at him in surprise.

"I saw that he's wearing a gold wedding band." the old man backpedaled quickly. "We should get the little one warm, though, and one of us needs to call the ambulance."

Palmer immediately got the phone out and made the call.

Gibbs turned to Tony suddenly. "DiNozzo, hold the baby."

Tony was a little taken aback, but did as asked while Gibbs turned to Ziva and unzipped her jacket about halfway down.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Trust me."

He pulled Ziva's arms through the sleeves of her jacket and arranged them into a cradling position. He then took the baby back from Tony and placed it in her arms before zipping it back up, creating a temporary shelter. The baby let out a sigh of contentment and snuggled closer to Ziva when it felt her heartbeat.

"There you go." said Gibbs in a gentle, fatherly tone. "You're in charge of the baby now."

Ziva nodded. "I understand."

Gibbs turned to Tony and gave him the keys to his car. "DiNozzo, you stay with them; I'll want a report after they get settled at the hospital. Right now, go take them to my car and turn on the heater so they can keep warm until the ambulance arrives."

"Yes, boss."

Gibbs turned to McGee. "And I want you and Palmer to carry that stroller back to the van."

"So I can bring it back to Abby for her to process." McGee finished, realizing where the plan was going. "Copy, boss."

While Ducky stayed behind to direct some of the crime scene techs to help him with Ibrahim's body, Tony carefully guided Ziva and all of her precious cargo down the alley, back towards the yellow crime scene tape that marked the area off from the rest of the street. Gibbs walked behind them, but only because he was trying to figure out how he was going to explain the situation to Jenny, and McGee and Palmer were at the end, carrying the stroller between them.

They all made for a strange parade and were almost to the crime scene tape when Ziva heard a voice that nearly made her heart jump out of her chest.

"Ziva?"

She immediately wheeled towards the direction of the voice, just on the other side of the tape and instinctively held the baby closer as she tried to process who she was looking at.

 _"Abba?!"_

Ziva's father had arrived.


	16. Eli

It was all Ziva could do to not take a step backwards in bewilderment.

"Abba, _what_ are you _doing_ here?"

"I came to persuade Ibrahim to come back home, but it looks like I was too late."

Beside Ziva, and still holding onto her waist, Tony spoke to his partner. "Will you introduce us?"

"Right." Ziva nodded in turn to the others as she spoke to her father. "These are Special Agents Anthony DiNozzo, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and Timothy McGee, as well as James Palmer, the assistant to Medical Examiner, Doctor Donald Mallard. _He_ is back in the alley with Ibrahim's body."

Ziva looked around at her friends.

"Everyone, this is my father, Eli David. He is the current director of The Mossad."

Gibbs edged his way forward. "Why are you here, director? I've heard of you before."

"And I, you, Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs." he said, drawing out the other man's full name and title as he remembered what had happened the last time one of his children had interacted with NCIS. "I honestly have no other agenda than what I have just told my daughter."

Ziva spoke to her father again, mostly because she didn't want him to pick a fight with Gibbs about her in front of her.

"Abba, since you are here, I will not stop you unless I feel I must, but you should go have a chat with the director; she will be pleased to see you, even if the circumstances are less than fortunate."

At that, Gibbs turned to Ziva. "Do I even _want_ to know how your dad knows the director?

"I shall explain it later."

Gibbs took that in stride and turned back to Eli. "Then you and I will go back to NCIS right now."

"Of course, but," Eli looked at Ziva. "Have you at least found Ibrahim's little one? She is five months old, and her name is Aaliyah."

The baby in Ziva's arms promptly let out a sneeze, almost as if she was responding to her name.

"Aaliyah is here." Ziva nodded towards the tent in her jacket. "I found her a few minutes ago, and we are currently waiting for the ambulance to come. Where is her mother?"

"I do not know."

Ziva sighed. "Is there anything _else_ that you could at least tell me about Aaliyah, then?"

"Sometimes she has seizures, and the most recent one was two weeks ago."

A pang of worry constricted Ziva's heart, but it was dashed when Tony spoke to her again.

"Look, Ziva! The ambulance is here!"

Ziva breathed a sigh relief—she just wanted to get Aaliyah out of the cold, and herself away from her father.

"Lead me, Tony. Please."

"Sure thing. Come on."

A pair of officers who were both stationed nearby lifted up the crime scene tape, allowing Ziva and Tony to walk under it with ease.

When Ziva showed Aaliyah to the paramedics, they diagnosed her with hypothermia and had to bring her to the hospital immediately. After Ziva and Tony identified themselves as NCIS and stressed that Ziva was Aaliyah's current caretaker, neither of the paramedics had any qualms against letting them ride along.

The couple sat out of the way as the vehicle sped along, and Ziva's hands were plastered on her middle, tracking Rivka Faith's movements as she stretched and kicked.

Tony asked, "Are you going to tell your father about us, and Rivka, Ella, and Alison today?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes, but hopefully, he will be seated. I am the last of the David children, and the only one to have children of their own. I _will_ tell him about the changes in my life, of course, but I am also preparing myself because he may try to talk me into coming back to Israel."

"Gotcha." Tony said understandingly. "It's a lot for both of you, and you also have to prioritize what you're going to tell him and in what order."

"Correct." Ziva blew out a breath and then moved her hands to the front of her bump, near her navel, when she felt a light kick there. "Plus, Rivka has been incredibly jumpy since I picked up Aaliyah; she knows that she is here."

"Anything I can do?"

Ziva leaned against Tony and held out a hand to him. "Just hold my hand. Please."

Tony did.

* * *

When they got to the hospital, Ziva and Tony were brought to a private room in the NICU where the nurses attended to Aaliyah, readying her for a stay there. So as to jump start her temperature, while she underwent the beginning stages of skin-to-skin therapy with Ziva, the nurses turned up the thermostat a few degrees.

Under instruction from one of the nurses, Ziva took off jacket and shirt so that Aaliyah was cuddling against her tank top. If it was needed, Ziva would remove more later.

Aaliyah had imprinted on Ziva the moment she saw her in the alley and happily accepted a bottle from her, mostly because it had been far too long since she'd had any food in her system. She was annoyed at first about being hooked up to an oxygen line and a saline-IV bag, but her hunger won out and when she became content, she even started giggling when Ziva started talking to her in Hebrew. Ziva had been quite delighted when she realized that that was the language Aaliyah responded to the best.

"Pace yourself, sweet Aaliyah. There is plenty, and you do not have anyone to share with, so you can just take your time."

Aaliyah giggled even more when she felt Rivka Faith suddenly kick her in the side, eager to find out more about who was cuddling with her mother. Pulling away from her bottle, Aaliyah kicked one of her little feet in response. Rivka Faith kicked her yet again. It was like they were playing tag.

"Well, it is nice to see you two are getting along," Ziva laughed before giving Aaliyah a kiss and prompting her to keep drinking her bottle. "But you need to finish so we can start cuddles."

Aaliyah understood her and settled in to finish her bottle.

It was then that Ziva looked up at Tony to see that he was looking at her with heart eyes.

"What?" she asked with a blush, making sure she switched to English.

"You just look so beautiful and so natural with a baby in your arms." Tony kissed his love on the lips. "I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Ah, but to do _that,_ my dear, you have to propose to me."

Tony winked at her. "I haven't forgotten, babe."

"I—"

Any response that Ziva could have made was cut off by the sound of Tony's phone beeping at him with a new text.

"Probie is informing me that I have to come back to HQ to give Gibbs an update on Aaliyah, and also to work on tracking down Aaliyah's mother."

Ziva nodded understandingly. "Of course, and who knows, we _may_ even get to bring Aaliyah home. Ella and Alison would be beside themselves with joy."

"Definitely, but let's just keep in the present, hm?" Tony gave Ziva one last kiss. "I'll call you later."

"Okay." she snuck in one last kiss of her own. "See you later."

* * *

When Aaliyah finished her bottle and had been burped, she was very comfortable with her caretaker, so since she was already down to just her diaper, Ziva took off her shirt and bra, laying the baby against her bare skin. After making sure her friend was comfortable and not kicking at her big belly again, Ziva draped the blanket over the two of them.

Aaliyah responded even better to this version of the therapy even more, pleased to feel the warmth of Ziva's bare skin, as well as her heartbeat. She was even yawning cutely and rubbing her eyes while Ziva told her her stories and sang to her in Hebrew.

Just as Aaliyah finally fell asleep, the door to the room opened, and one of the nurses poked her head in.

"Officer David?"

"Yes?"

"You have a visitor. Is it alright if I send him in?"

Ziva quickly made herself decent and nodded. "Please do."

The nurse bobbed her head and withdrew, sending Ziva's visitor in. It was Eli.

"Shalom, Abba." Ziva greeted her father as he undid his jacket and scarf, hanging them on the coatrack in the corner before sitting in the chair opposite his daughter. "Aaliyah is asleep, but fed, happy, and warm. I will probably be here for a few hours with her."

Eli smiled fondly and then said, "I was just having a chat with Agent Gibbs and Jennifer. Speaking of whom, I saw that she is expecting."

Ziva nodded. "She is thrilled about becoming a mother, but Abba, before we keep talking, did Mohammed, Salma, or Abdul come with you?"

"They are all here," (Ziva groaned at that) "But they are all at our hotel at the moment, so you do not have to see them just yet."

"Thank you for that tidbit. Do you know Aaliyah's mother?"

"Very well, actually. Her name now is Rachel Yosef-Majors, and I know that her mother lives in New York City, but I have not heard from her since she left Tel Aviva two whole weeks ago."

"Why was she in Tel Aviv to begin with? I recognize Rachel as a Hebrew name, but Majors? _That_ is American."

"Rachel _is_ an American, but she was studying abroad in Tel Aviv a few years ago."

"How old is she? Ibrahim was a few years older than me."

"Rachel is your age, actually. The way the story goes is that she met Ibrahim not long after you two ended things, and not long into it, she became pregnant and had twin sons."

Intrigued, Ziva asked, "Aaliyah has brothers? What are their names?"

"Caleb and Moses. They are three now, and born less than a year after Ibrahim's and Rachel's wedding. Three more years went by, and then Ibrahim and Rachel tell me that Aaliyah is on the way."

"Do you know why Rachel came back without Aaliyah and Ibrahim? Are Caleb and Moses with her?"

Eli leaned back in his chair. "Caleb and Moses are with her, that much I know, but your people are no doubt tracking them, and I am sure they will keep you appraised. Rachel came back with Ibrahim and Aaliyah because her visa expired, but the day before she had to leave, Aaliyah became ill."

"You mean she had a seizure?"

"Yes, and I know all of these things because Ibrahim worked for me."

"As a result, you grew close with him and his wife, and you them have their happy ending."

"Indeed."

"Well, I am pleased that Ibrahim could be happy."

Eli smiled, proud of Ziva's maturity. "Ibrahim and Rachel have a house here that they just bought so she has a place to live with Caleb and Moses. He agreed to bring Aaliyah to Rachel after she got better since Rachel cannot come back to Israel for awhile, and Ibrahim was to stay here for two months to help his family settle in."

"But…?"

"While Aaliyah was in the hospital, recovering, Ibrahim came to my office and surprised me with a letter of resignation."

A small spark of anger ignited in Ziva when she realized what Eli was going to say next. "So you _followed_ him all the way here to ask him to come back? Abba, he was the father of an ill child, and perhaps not everyone who joins The Mossad chooses to stay for life! If Ari, Tali, or I had been this kind of ill when _we_ were children, would you have continued on in The Mossad or would you have changed things around to help Ima?"

It was rare that Ziva brought her mother up when she and her father argued, but when she did, she always did it to settle a point. That had happened yet again, so Eli just sighed and changed the subject.

"When did you learn to be so good with children?"he asked when he saw Ziva give Aaliyah a few kisses and back rubs when she became fussy for a few moments. "I do no think I have ever seen you interact this well with little ones before."

Carefully holding Aaliyah in place, Ziva smoothed out the blanket, framing the size of her middle.

"I am having a baby." Ziva told Eli. "She is due in early March."

Eli suddenly didn't know what to say. True, when he had become a father for the first time, he had been looking forward to the possibility of grandchildren one day, but then Talia hadn't lived even lived long enough to enter a proper childbearing age, Ari showed zero interest in having children or even a wife, and then Ziva had become completely unreadable in that area… so Eli had given up on ever becoming a grandparent. Now that Ziva showing off her pregnant belly and was extremely proud of it, Eli began to feel conflicted.

"A _baby?_ Mazel tov, chickpea, but when are you coming back to The Mossad?"

Ziva took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Never, Abba. I am _done,_ and I intend on submitting a proper letter of resignation soon."

Eli looked like he wanted to get angry, but he restrained himself when he remembered that Aaliyah was asleep, so he chose his words carefully.

"Why are you turning your back on something that you have been part of since you were _twelve?"_

"I am not turning my back—I am just turning different direction because I did not expect to get attached to anyone at NCIS."

"And now that you have…?"

"I have realized that the more attached I became, the more I was growing to love this job, as well as the people with whom I work. You are my father, yes, and Ima was my mother and Ari and Talia were by siblings; I will never forsake any one of you because blood is blood, so do not worry about that. I just happen to have a family of my own now."

"Your team?"

Ziva nodded. "Agent Gibbs amd the director are like parents, and Doctor Mallard is as dear as a grandfather. He even loves me like a granddaughter since he never had a wife or children. When you were at NCIS just now, did you happen to run into a woman called Abby Scuito?"

"The pregnant one who was dressed in all black and acting ridiculously cheerful? Yes."

 _"She_ is like a sister, and McGee and Palmer are like brothers to me."

"And what of Anthony DiNozzo?"

Ziva laughed nervously. "Tony is my partner, and my best friend."

"Is he the father of your daughter?"

"Technically, no, but he does love her that way."

Eli arched an eyebrow. "Then who is the actual father? Where is he now?"

"He was in The Marines, but he is dead now because his friend shot him over money troubles. He knew about the baby, but he really did not want her, and he made sure I knew it."

Eli had not been expecting any of that, and what resentment he had been feeling towards his daughter's new life plans, was now evaporating.

"Oh, chickpea, I am deeply sorry for you. Is your team helping you?"

"Yes, especially because the baby in my belly already has two older sisters."

"Excuse me?"

Ziva explained about Ella Brave and Alison Joy, and exactly how they'd become hers, although she refrained from saying their names just yet.

"You did the right thing, Ziva, by taking them in." praised Eli.

"Thank you, Abba. Would you like to see a picture of them?"

Eli nodded, so Ziva fetched her phone from the bedside table a flipped through a few before settling on a good one of her and her girls. Abby had taken it during their mall outing.

When Eli took the phone and looked at the picture, he was immediately smitten by the little ones.

"They look like you!" he said in amusement. "They are so beautiful; what are their names?"

"The baby is Alison Joy, and she will be seven months on the six of January. Her sister turns three this week on the twenty-fifth, and she is called Ella Brave."

Eli handed the phone back and watched Ziva put it back on her beside table, commenting, "Those are beautiful names. Does their baby sister have a name yet, too?"

"Oh, yes, and you are going to really like it."

"What is it?"

"We named our child Rivka Faith."

A lump rise in Eli's throat as he thought of his wife, how delighted she would have been to have grandchildren, especially a grandchild that was named after her.

"What a _wonderful_ way to honor your mother." he complimented. "Who, may I ask is Faith?"

"She was Tony's mother—she passed away when he was a boy."

"I see. Does this mean that you and he are together, a couple?"

"Yes, and we love each other very much. Even Ella and Alison both adore him."

"Have you and he eloped, or anything of the sort?"

"No, but we want to get married, and he is going to propose to me, though I do not know when yet."

Eli felt himself slipping into 'protective parent' mode, but he couldn't help it. "He is not going to propose to you before _I_ have a chat with him."

Surprised at her father's roundabout way of already choosing to be a big person about this particular bombshell, Ziva wrote Tony's number down on a piece of the hospital stationary and handed it him. Eli pocketed it quickly as his offspring also delivered him a warning.

"Be good to him, otherwise you may not be allowed to come to the wedding. Tony is very important to me, and he is the love of my life."

As good as Eli was being at that particular moment and as much as he knew his daughter loved him, Eli David was not a man without sin. He couldn't blame Ziva for feeling it necessary to say what she did.

"You have my word, Ziva." he said seriously. "Now I have one last question."

"Oh?"

"Do you realize that by marrying Tony, you will become an American citizen?"

"I actually do, and that is half the reason that marriage is on the table, but Abba, we really _do_ love each other, and we cannot imagine our lives without each other. Anthony DiNozzo is my soulmate."

While Eli David had a few less problems with the English language than what Ziva came equipped with, he certainly understood 'soulmate' because his wife had been his.

"Then this means that you have plans to stay here with your family and become a full NCIS agent?"

"Yes. Are you angry?"

"Now that you have explained things properly, no. I am very happy for you, chickpea."

Ziva turned to mush. "Thank you."

"You are quite welcome. Also—if you choose not to have a big, noisy Jewish wedding, I will understand, but at least get a Jewish judge to officiate it, hm? That is all I ask."

"I think that we will be able to handle that," Ziva answered, thinking of Judge Amos.

"Wonderful." Eli stood and stretched, getting ready to go. "I have enjoyed reconnecting, Ziva. I love you and I miss you."

"I have also enjoyed reconnecting, and I also miss you and love you."

Eli put on his jacket and scarf again. "I will talk to you tomorrow."

"Alright." Ziva paused for a moment, thinking about one thing she'd been wondering about since the conversation had begun. "Abba, would Ima have been _proud_ of me, where all of this is considered?"

Eli quickly crossed back from the coatrack to his daughter.

"She would have been so proud of you, my child." he kissed her on the top of her head and looked her in the eyes, giving her a kind, fatherly smile. "I already am."

Ziva didn't start crying until Eli was gone from the room.

But she cried because she was happy.


	17. Tony And Eli

By the time Ziva was home for the night, and she and Tony had gotten the girls fed, ready for bed, and asleep for the night, she still didn't know as much about the case as everyone else did, as far as where Ibrahim was concerned, or even where Rachel and her sons were, but she trusted that she would would be informed at some point in the morning. After she paid a visit to Aaliyah.

For now, she had to focus on her family… specifically Tony.

Ziva had decided that tonight would be the night to tell him that she would take the 'no-sex' rule off the table, and she had even decided that she was going to show him her box of sex toys, in the hopes of getting him in the mood, but all of that went right out the window when she entered their bedroom and found him rifling through his half of their large walk-in closet. He was dressed in a white button-down shirt and silk boxers. Clearly, he was up to something.

 _"Why_ are so many of my 'after-hours' shirts ones with _Hawaiian_ prints on them?" he asked when she joined him. "I _really_ need a wardrobe update!"

"You do." agreed Ziva. "What is happening?"

"Your dad called. He invited me to dinner at the hotel restaurant, just me and him."

"You said yes, I take it, and now you are panicking because you have tunnel vision and cannot decide on what to wear?"

Tony sighed—she'd hit the nail on the head. "Yes to all of that."

Ziva stood next to him, eyeing the selection of clean suits he had hanging up. After a moment, she pulled out a dark blue suit and handed it to him.

"You not worn this one for awhile, and abba loves all shades of blue. Take these, as well."

She pointed to a black leather belt, his favorite pair of brown leather Italian loafers, and a pair of white socks, all of which she had laid out for him on top of his dresser.

"Thank you, Z. What would I do without you?"

She watched him as he dressed himself, wishing that she could jump his bones right then and there. "Most likely experience _more_ wardrobe malfunctions and meltdowns. What time did he say for you to come?"

"He said he made a reservation for eight, and has a car scheduled to pick me up at seven-thirty. What time do you have now?"

Ziva checked the time on Tony's Rolex before strapping it on his wrist for him. "It is now seven-ten."

"Twenty minutes, and then I'm going to formally meet your dad. Anything I should know?"

"Abba is extremely protective of me, and he despises the New York Jets and the Dallas Cowboys. Those are football teams, yes?"

"Oh, yes, but most people don't like them—even I don't. Any football teams your old man does like?"

Ziva chuckled as she picked out a blue-and-purple striped tie for Tony and tied it for him as he smoothed out his shirt and sleeve cuffs.

"I have never understood American football or how abba has managed to keep track of American sports teams all the way from Israel, although I suppose that since I'm going to become an American citizen, I should make an effort to attend more sporting events—football, basketball, baseball, and the like," Ziva straightened out Tony's tie and began tucking in his shirt. "But abba actually likes the same sports teams as you: the Baltimore Ravens and your alma mater, the Ohio State Buckeyes."

Tony immediately breathed easier. "I can work with that."

Ziva finished fixing Tony's shirt and smiled at him. "Wonderful."

Tony grinned and then took in the sight of his companion—she had changed into a nightgown, was makeup-free, and wearing her hair in a loose braid. He loved her, no matter what she looked like, but his favorite look on her was when she was completely herself, all natural.

"You look so beautiful." he told her.

Ziva blushed and physically steered Tony out of their closet and across the bedroom, towards their bathroom. "Thank you, but it is just the hormones. Who knows—I could look a lot different when I am carrying our baby boy in a few years. Fatter, heavier, crankier."

"Glowier, just the right size, happier…"

"Smartass, 'glowier' is not a word." Ziva gave Tony a small swat on his rear end as they entered the bathroom. "Now spend some time tarting up your hair, hm? Do you know what that means, my dear?"

Tony nodded as he turned and began checking his reflection in the mirror over the sink. "It means 'improve on your appearance,' and things like that. I spent most of my childhood education at a boarding school upstate, and it was run by an English headmistress. I know a thing or two about language."

"Color me impressed."

"You had something planned for tonight, didn't you?"

"Yes, but getting to know my father is far more important."

Feeling a jab in her side, Ziva sighed and massaged the spot.

"Perhaps it is a good thing that we have not had to bring Aaliyah home from the hospital."

"What makes you sat that, babe?"

"Because Rivka was very, very jumpy while we were looking after Aaliyah. I think she was jealous."

Still styling his hair, Tony used the mirror to arch an eyebrow at his love. "Rivka Faith hasn't even been born yet."

Ziva shrugged. "All that I know is that she was incredibly while Aaliyah was around, and for whatever reason, is getting quite jumpy again; she may drive me insane before the night is out. Imagine, even for a _single_ evening, adding Aaliyah in with her, Ella, and Alison—two of them are just about the same age! The phrase for that, even though Aaliyah would make child number four, is 'double trouble,' is it not?"

"It is, and good point. Maybe you should go find something to do before she starts hiccuping again."

Rivka Faith had recently gained the ability to hiccup, and Ziva was convinced that her daughter would start her hiccuping jags on purpose, especially at work. She'd cried more than once in frustration over it.

Shuddering at the thought of a hiccuping jag, Ziva took Tony's advice and headed out to the living room to choose a book from the kids' bookshelf. Rivka Faith loved being read to.

That left Tony to his own devices. And thoughts.

He was going to be properly meeting Eli David, the director of The Mossad, and more importantly, Ziva's father.

His fingers were that he didn't trip over himself too much and that Eli would like him.

Before long, he got a call that his ride arrived, so he kissed Ziva and Rivka Faith goodbye and headed out of the house.

* * *

"How are you doing tonight, Anthony?" Eli asked after the waitress had brought them their wine. "It is nice to meet in a restaurant, and not an alley."

Tony laughed nervously at the older man's quip. "I'll give you that one, sir, but I'm just a little nervous."

"Because my daughter is your partner, your best friend, and the woman you love enough to want to marry and even have a family with, even though _that_ has already begun in an unorthodox way?"

"That's exactly it."

"When did you know what you were in love with Ziva?"

Tony was kept from answering at that particular moment because the waitress had returned to take their orders. When that was done, Eli returned his gaze to him, an expectant look on his face.

"Right." Tony laughed another nervous laugh. "I knew I was in love with Ziva from the first moment that I saw her."

"Even though she killed her brother for assassinating one of your colleagues and because he was about to kill your boss?"

Tony nodded. "Yes on both. Kate was fun and I'm always going to remember her, but I would have never had a chance with her."

"Did you love her?"

"No." Tony said truthfully. "Nothing serious ever happened."

"So there is nothing hanging over you and my daughter anymore? She told me of what happened between her and Lieutenant Shockley."

"There isn't anything else, no. I did tell her that you and I are meeting tonight."

"But the things that you and I discuss shall stay between us men. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I do, sir." Tony said quickly.

"Excellent. Now tell me—Ziva said that your mother passed away when you were a boy; what was your life like before then?"

"It was just me, mom, and my dad, but we were happy."

Eli pressed Tony for details, and over the course of dinner, Tony told him more about himself, as well a few different stories from different points in his life. To his relief and his delight, Eli was very amused and even laughing along with him at the funnier tales. He even shared some very adorable, endearing stories about Ziva from her own childhood that he was sure she wouldn't have heard, otherwise.

"Anthony," Eli said after they were done and waiting for their dessert. "How old are you?"

"Thirty-six."

"Do you know how old Ziva is?"

Tony nodded. "Yes, and it surprised me, but it's never made much of a difference to us."

"Did Ziva ever tell you the age difference between her mother and myself?"

"No."

"Rivka and I were ten years apart. I met her for the first time in Jerusalem after one of her piano recitals."

 _"How_ did you meet Rivka, though? Ask for her autograph, or something?"

Eli laughed. "Actually, after her concert, I went to a bar across the lane, and she followed me."

Tony was interested even more. "Did she, now?"

"Yes, and she sat next to me at the counter, too. She ordered us both drinks and told me that she'd noticed me from where I sat in the audience, and that I was watching only her and nobody else."

"What happened after she bought the drinks?"

"Rivka and I talked all night, and we fell in love. She became both my best friend and my companion in time after that."

"When did you propose?"

"A year-and-a-half later. She'd been invited to play in the New York Philharmonic when they were doing Beauty And The Beast on Broadway. It was the last night, and after it was over, I found her in the in the crowd and proposed to her on the spot."

"And then Rivka said yes?"

"She did, and later, when it was just the two of us, she told me that Ziva was on the way."

Tony smiled happily—that had been a lovely story, but he had suddenly found himself wondering when Ari had entered the picture, since he had been a half sibling, and a little bit older than Ziva.

Eli seemed to be reading his mind. "I did not know about Ari until he was already six—his whole family had been wiped out in a mortar bombing."

"And he was the only survivor?"

"Correct, and he was even living on the streets before someone brought him to us. We could not say no."

"Wasn't Rivka mad?"

Realizing that Tony was hinting at his affair, Eli decided to just tell the truth. "She was at first, but when she saw how hungry, dirty, sad, and pathetic Ari was at the time, she forgave me and told me that she was happy to have a son. She was his mother from that day forward, until she passed away, and she loved him _so_ much. When Ari arrived into our lives, though, Ziva was almost four, and Talia had just turned one."

"Did they imprint on their brother?"

"And he, on them. They all adored each other and were best friends."

"That's really nice."

Eli smiled at that. "Do you and Ziva plan on having any more children in the future?"

"We do, and we wouldn't mind another daughter, but we really want at least one son, too."

"Very good." Eli approved. "Are you two planning on always living here in D.C. while the children are young?"

"We've never thought about living anywhere else, to tell you the truth, because we love it here, and we both really love working at NCIS."

Eli sat back in chair, mulling things over, although mostly because he'd run out of questions to ask.

During his meeting with Gibbs and the director, he'd asked them for their opinions of Tony, and while they both mentioned the man's pranksterish, fun-loving ways, they were both just as quick to mention that he was very strong, admirable, honorable, and that he would go above and beyond the call of duty to protect Ziva. They also told Eli of how Tony had come to them asking for their blessing since they watched over Ziva like parents. Now that Eli was talking to the man of the hour, he saw that everything the other two had said was completely true.

And he loved all of it.

"What are you doing, sir?" Tony asked when he saw Eli reach into his inside coat pocket.

"You have more than earned the privilege to call me Eli now, and as for what I am doing, I am retrieving this."

Eli pulled out a small black velvet box and opened it, sliding it across the table for Tony to see.

Tony opened the box to see a beautiful silver diamond engagement ring that was both old and very beautiful. The band had smaller diamonds going down either side, and the diamond itself was perched in a small silver piece that was shaped like a flower.

"Is this the ring that you proposed to Rivka with?" Tony asked.

"Indeed, and she loved it, especially because she loved flowers. When Ziva was born, Rivka set the ring aside so that we could give it to whomever Ziva was completely sure that she was going to spend the rest of her life with, and that is you, so it is now yours to propose to Ziva with."

"Wow; thank you!" Tony closed the box and put it away in his own jacket pocket for safekeeping. "Ziva is my soulmate."

"She said the same thing of you."

"Is it alright if I ask you something, Eli?"

"Of course, Anthony."

"Quick note: please call me Tony; I was named after my dad, and I've spent a lifetime trying to disassociate myself from him as much as possible."

Recalling how Tony had described his relationship with his father, Eli took the note in stride and answered, "I understand, Tony. What was it that you had wanted to ask?"

"Would Rivka have liked me? I was kind of hoping to hear an answer from you."

"She would have adored you."

Tony beamed, pleased. "Thanks!"

Eli smiled kindly at the younger man. "You are quite welcome, and I think I see the waitress coming with our desserts."

Just as he finished saying that, the waitress who had been serving them all night had returned with her customers' desserts—a slice of Tiramisu for Eli, and a slice of red velvet cheesecake for Tony.

The two men closed out the night with (what else?) a long, in-depth conversation about football.

Tony was very glad at the end of the night to have a chauffeur drive him back home—dinner out with Eli David had gone so well that he couldn't think of anything else… or the ring in his pocket.


	18. Body Electric

When Tony got home, he had to use a lot of self-control to not go running through the house, yelling Ziva's name. He was desperate to tell her how smoothly things had gone with Eli, but he also wanted Ella Brave and Alison Joy to sleep, mostly because he wanted to see what it was that Ziva had had up her sleeve earlier and if she still wanted to whatever it had been.

Once in the bedroom with the door shut, though, Tony gasped at the sight before him.

Ziva was laying on the bed, propped up against the pillows and headboard, but was in just her underthings, which Tony noticed were purple and lacy. Her skin was also a bit flush, and the stray hair that had escaped the confines of its braid was just about plastered to her forehead by a fine sheen of sweat.

It was almost as if…

Tony opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was an extremely lust-filled groan as all of the the blood in his body instantly went rushing to a very specific area of his lower region.

Unabashed, Ziva said, "The sooner you put your things away, the sooner you may come back."

Tony didn't need telling twice. Moving quickly, he went to the closet and carefully put away his shoes and watch, taking extra care to lock up the ring in the safe where he kept his ring and other valuables. He already knew he was going to propose.

When he returned, Ziva was now sitting up straight and watching Tony with a seductive grin.

"I am always pleased to see you, my dear, but at the moment, I am extra pleased."

Tony sat with her. "Ziva, what have you been up to?"

"I became quite horny while you were gone, and I have tried _everything."_ (she pointed to a small wooden box between them and Tony's pants became even tighter when he saw that it was filled with a variety of sex toys) "That even includes touching myself."

Tony stammered as he responded because the sight of Ziva as she was before him, but minus the burgeoning baby belly, was often a theme of his fantasies. This was literally a dream true.

"A-and no luck?"

Ziva shook her head. "None, but I was thinking that perhaps I would have better luck if you helped."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes… unless you do not want to."

"I do." Tony said quickly as he loosened his tie. "I definitely do."

"Good man." Using Tony's tie, Ziva pulled her lover closer to her. "Now come here and kiss me like you mean it."

Tony immediately leaned in and gave Ziva a kiss that made both of them feel as though their brains were melting. It was followed by a hot flurry of kisses as he went down her neck and intended to go down her chest, but when he got there, Ziva pushed him away gently.

"What?" Tony protested.

"Nothing here." Ziva pointed to her bust. "All sore."

"Gotcha, Z. Anything else?"

"No, but here—you are definitely allowed to look."

She unhooked her bra and cast it aside before turning back to Tony. His eyes were only in one place now: Ziva's breasts were very full and beautiful, thanks to the pregnancy hormones. They were also quite pert, too. Tony had no doubt that they were just as soft as they looked, but remembering what Ziva had said about feeling sore, Tony eased her back onto the pillows and continued kissing his way down her body.

When he got to her midsection, though, he and Ziva both had a chuckle: excited by what was happening, Rivka Faith had woken up from her nap and was now stretching her arms and legs, wanting to be included.

"Don't worry, Ladybug." Tony said gently to his daughter as he gave the bump a few rubs and kisses. "Just hang out there and be still for awhile. Ima and I will play with you later, maybe after we have a nap."

Rivka Faith actually calmed, so Tony resumed kissing Ziva's body, this time stopping at the underside of her bump.

He rose up on his knees and looked at her. He didn't even have to say anything, and she understood, spreading her legs for him and nodding.

Heeding Ziva's unspoken permission, Tony knelt back down and removed Ziva's last piece of undergarment, whereupon he proceeded to kiss the inside of her thighs.

The pleasurable moans from Ziva's lips were making Tony's pulse race.

"I love you so much." Ziva sighed happily. "I love you, I love you, I love you."

Tony knew that Ziva's sex drive was already skyrocketing like this because of the extra hormones racing through her body because she was pregnant, but his heart began to swell with even more love for Ziva when she told him that.

"I love you, too, Ziva." he kissed his way up her left leg, even closer to her center. "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

Tony began to eat her out, and took his time, even going so far as to use his tongue on her.

Ziva was enjoying the experience as much as Tony was, and when she egged him on to draw it out for as long as possible, he did until—

"Tony, I'm _so_ close; use your tongue a little more!"

Using his tongue like a probe, he slid it in just a little bit further, putting even more intensity into his actions.

Before long—

"Oh, Tony!"

Ziva said her partner's name softly, but still completely fully of nothing but desire, lust, and love for him and only his as she orgasmed powerfully. Tony, of course, kept his mouth in place, riding it out with Ziva until she came down altogether.

"Wow…" she panted when she stopped seeing stars.

Tony kissed his way back up Ziva's body, ending with a kiss on the lips. "Do you feel better now?"

Ziva caressed Tony's face. "Yes, I do. Thank you."

"You're welcome." Still fully clothed, Tony flopped down beside her. "When you feel up to it, will you please return the favor? But please don't wait too long, okay?"

Ziva sat up and looked over at Tony's pants to see that a tentpole had formed in them.

"I will help you, my dear." she purred. "You just enjoy."

Tony propped himself up on his elbows to see Ziva diligently undo the zipper on his pants and pull his cock and testicles out. Ziva even stroked Tony's cock a few times, just to get it even more rigid than it already was.

"I am impressed, Tony. It is just as I have always pictured."

"How long is 'always'?" he asked, falling back again.

"Almost as long as we have known each other."

Ziva placed a trail of hot kisses from the base of Tony's shaft to the top, ending with a very delicate kiss on the tip.

"You will tell me when you are close, yes?"

Tony had closed his eyes by now, truly enjoying Ziva's touches, but he wasn't too far over the brink to answer her.

"Okay, Z. Please keep going."

And Ziva did.

About ten minutes into it, Tony spoke up in a near-strangled tone, "I'm really going to burst now!"

"Okay, my dear."

Ziva leaned over, and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, deepthroated Tony, and patted him on the leg.

He promptly erupted in her mouth, but she held on, swallowing everything and drained him dry.

When he finally remembered his name, he said, "That was incredible. I—what are you doing?"

Ziva was unbuckling Tony's pants.

"Undressing you, silly." she smiled. "We are going to cuddle now. Is that alright?"

"Absolutely."

Pleased, Ziva made quick work of undressing Tony completely, and when she was finished, he got under the covers. In the meantime, Ziva hid her box of toys in a place were Ella Brave wouldn't accidentally find them. When she was confident they were hidden enough, she closed the closet door and turned off the overhead light and joined him in bed.

Under the covers, the couple began to spoon, and for a few moments, neither of them said anything as Tony gently pumped his cock between Ziva's thighs as just a little bit of the remaining semen leaked from the tip. The only real sound in the room was Tony's soft, primal grunts as he did this and Ziva's happy sighs. Tony was being completely primal and marking Ziva as his, but Ziva didn't mind it because her heart was his, just as his heart was hers.

After tonight, they were connected for life, truly soulmates.

"How is the baby?" Tony asked just before they fell asleep.

Ziva glided her hand over her middle, checking on Rivka Faith. For her trouble, Ziva felt a tiny pair of heels pressing against her before Rivka Faith turned over so that she felt her daughter's back under her palm.

"She is content and falling asleep, as am I."

Tony yawned. "Me, too."

"Then good night, my dear."

"Good night, babe."

They kissed one more time before settling in for sleep.

All was well in the David-DiNozzo house… until the phone rang a few hours later.


	19. Aaliyah

Ziva woke abruptly from a dream to the sound of her phone ringing on the bedside table. After a little bit of fumbling, she managed to turn on her lamp and answer the mobile device.

"Hello?" she asked sleepily.

"Is this Officer Ziva David?"

At that, Ziva was immediately more alert and shaking Tony awake. "Yes. Who is this, please?"

"Clara Harding—I'm the doctor in charge of Aaliyah Yosef in the Pediatrics Intensive Care Unit at D.C. General."

"Right." Ziva remembered meeting her the previous day. "How is Aaliyah?"

Beside Ziva, Tony had woken up and was already realizing that she was probably about to leave, so he got dressed and left the bed to look for clothes for her to wear.

"Aaliyah has just had a seizure, and now she won't let anyone touch her or comfort her because she'll put up a fight with anyone who tries to do either. Since you are her guardian for the time being, I decided to call you first."

"I appreciate that. Has Aaliyah spiked a fever, or anything of the sort?"

"No, but she is extremely irritable."

"I understand, and I will be there in thirty minutes or less."

When Ziva hung up and put her phone back on the bedside table, she had just swung her feet over the edge and begun to comfort Rivka Faith—who had begun protesting at being woken up—when Tony knelt in front of her.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Tony, Aaliyah has just had a seizure and is allowing nobody to touch her or comfort her. I have to go to her now."

"Alright." he showed her a duffle bag. "I found some clothes for you to wear right now, and also some clothes for work. There's shoes, too."

"Thank you, my dear."

"You're welcome." Tony stood and kissed Ziva's brow. "I'll go get your car keys now."

Ziva thanked him again and quickly dressed herself. By the rime Tony returned, she was ready to go, so he helped her carry her things out to her car in the garage. She had the duffel bag Tony had packed for her, as well as her badge, gun, and NCIS bag, figuring that she would be going straight to work after checking on Aaliyah.

Just as the garage door closed behind Ziva as she drove down the driveway and down their street in the darkness of the early morning hours, it suddenly occurred to Tony that he was going to have to get Ella Brave and Alison Joy ready for the day by himself. In the next second, though, he realized that if Ziva had once taken care of them by herself every day for a month, he could certainly do it for one morning.

"Oh, well." he said aloud to himself with a dejected sigh. "More practice for life with daughters."

* * *

At the hospital, Ziva found Aaliyah's doctor in front of the picture window that looked into the infant's room. Aaliyah wasn't crying, although it was clear that she had been recently, but the look on her face as she laid there in her crib made it look like she'd just given up. The sight broke Ziva's heart.

"Has she gotten better?" the officer asked.

"No, not since I called." Doctor Harding shook her head. "And thank you for coming so quickly."

"Aaliyah's father was a friend of my father, and her mother still is; I feel very responsible for her."

Ziva looked through the window at Aaliyah. She was dressed in a lightweight sleeping jumper, and a blanket that she'd been sleeping with was bunched up at her feet, where she'd kicked it away.

Because of the seizure, Aaliyah was also hooked up to various wires and things that were all monitoring her health, but when Ziva surveyed her little charge, she thought that something was a little off.

"I see measures being taken to monitor her brain, her blood pressure, and her heart." Ziva turned to Harding. "I also see that Aaliyah on oxygen, but should she not be on an IV drip, or something of the sort, too?"

"She should be, but she kicks and pitches a fit at anyone who comes close to her with a needle, but I can't say I blame her—the needle has to be inserted into one of her heels because that's where the strongest veins are."

"Perhaps _I_ could hold her and distract her while you put her on the IV line?"

Harding agreed and held open the door to Aaliyah's room, allowing her to enter first. When Ziva put her things away, she approached the crib, beaming when Aaliyah lit up at the sight of her, making happy noises and kicking her legs animatedly.

Ziva spoke softly to her in Hebrew. "Hello, dear little friend. I am _so_ very pleased to see you happy."

Aaliyah giggled cutely before yawning and beckoning to Ziva. With Harding's help, Aaliyah was lifted out of the crib and put into Ziva's arms. Mindful of all the wires that Aaliyah was hooked up to, Ziva carried her to the rocking chair that was in the corner of the room, by the window.

Still in Hebrew, Ziva said to Aaliyah as they sat down, "I suppose this means that I am going to keep taking care of you for awhile, but I do not mind it."

Aaliyah rubbed her eyes yet again and this time let out a soft giggle when she got a nudge in the side from Rivka Faith.

"I am also glad to see that you are amused," Ziva kissed one of Aaliyah's little hands. "But perhaps you and Rivka will snooze _together_ because all play and no sleep makes for cranky babies."

Aaliyah gave yet another yawn.

This whole time, Doctor Harding had been discreetly preparing the IV line, and with Ziva keeping Aaliyah completely distracted, she was able to completely set the line and encase her foot in a medical boot, so as to discourage her from accidentally dislodging the needle.

Of course, Aaliyah wasn't too keen on having something sharp stuck in any part of her foot, but Ziva was quick to comfort her and sing to her until the little one forgot w her woes and was happy, giggly puddle of mush.

"You're a natural." Harding observed when she'd cleaned everything up. "Do you have any children besides the one you're carrying?"

Making sure to switch back to English, Ziva replied, "Yes—I have two little girls named Ella and Alison."

"How old are they?"

"Ella will soon be three, and Alison is a month older than Aaliyah."

"So little. I have four, myself, but my youngest is finishing high school, the middle two are in college, and my firstborn is married with children of her own." Harding smiled. "I love my children, but I miss when they were as tiny as Aaliyah."

"And I can't wait to see how _my_ children will turn out when they grow up, but I am most definitely enjoying them as little ones." She gave Aaliyah an extra cuddle. "I am enjoying Aaliyah, too. Will I be able to take her out of the hospital today? We are working on locating her mother, but I am sure that that she should not have to stay here until then."

"I'll check on her in an hour or so, but yes, I'm confident that she will be able to be released today. That being said, it would be in Aaliyah's best interest if you stayed with her; can you manage that?"

"I will have to call my boss to tell him, but he will understand because he assisted me to look after Aaliyah, but to answer your question, yes."

"Good." Harding inspected Aaliyah's charts briefly. "It's been awhile since Aaliyah's last bottle, so she probably wants one right now. I'll go make her one."

Aaliyah was very happy to have a bottle because she felt like she was almost starving as a result from all of the drama that her body had just undergone. When she finished it, she was completely content and made no fuss when Ziva changed her diaper and put her in fresh clothes. All was right in her world again.

Aaliyah fell asleep not long after the sun came up, and so content was she that she was actually grinning in her sleep.

Harding returned not long after that.

"Officer David?"

Ziva looked up at the sound of her name. "Please just call me Ziva. Aaliyah fell asleep twenty minutes ago."

"Alright." Harding lowered her tone a little, wanting to let Aaliyah keep sleeping. "Have you had a chance to call your boss yet, Ziva?"

She shook her head and then blew out a breath as she felt her stomach rumble. "I also need to eat because I have not had a chance yet today."

"Then I have good timing because I was just going to offer to sit with Aaliyah so you can make the calls you need to and find food—the cafeteria just opened up."

"That is a relief." Ziva held out a hand to Harding. "Will you help me stand, please?"

The doctor obliged, and traded places with Ziva, soon cuddling with Aaliyah. Satisfied, Ziva left.

* * *

When she got down to the cafeteria area, she sat on a bench by the entrance and used the phone to call her boss.

He answered on the third ring. "What can I do for you, Ziva?"

"Has Tony told you anything yet about Aaliyah?"

There was a pause and then, "He just walked into the bullpen. Where are you right now?"

"At the hospital with Aaliyah. She had a seizure two hours ago."

"How is she?"

"Recovering, and being looked after by a doctor at the moment. This would also be the same doctor who was assigned to her upon admittance, and who also alerted me to Aaliyah's epileptic episode today."

"I see. How long does Aaliyah need to be at the hospital?"

"She will be able to be released before noon, but it has been requested that I stay with her until then. Is that alright?"

"Yes, and I'll have DiNozzo be the one to collect you and Aaliyah."

"Thank you, Gibbs."

"You're welcome. Is there anything else?"

"What should I do with Aaliyah after we leave here?"

"Bring her here."

Ziva was taken aback. "I beg your pardon? What of her mother?"

"I spoke with Missus Yosef-Majors, and she told me that she's been in New York this whole time—she and the boys went straight there after coming back from Israel, instead of to the house they have here."

"Is she with her parents?"

Gibbs shook his head even though Ziva couldn't see him. "Just her mother, Lane Majors. It's only ever been the two of them."

"And so Rachel went to see her." Ziva realized. "Who told her of Ibrahim's death?"

"Your father did. He called her." Gibbs told her. "Eli also told me about how you and Ibrahim were engaged, once upon a time, but you broke it off?"

"Indeed, I did: he was too power-hungry, and I was not even twenty at the time. I did not want to spend the rest of my life with someone almost a decade older than me who only wanted in to my family for the money and the power. I guess he has matured since then because it looks like he deeply loved Rachel, enough to marry her and have three children with her." Ziva rubbed her temples with her free hand. "My father is no doubt as protective of Rachel as he is because she is my age. Is she coming with her sons and her mother now?"

"Yes. Missus Yosef-Majors called me just as their train was leaving the station, and they're expecting it to be a little bit behind because of weather conditions."

"Otherwise they would have been here sooner."

"Bingo, and I told her that you've been looking after her daughter. She says thank you, and also to pass along an important message to you."

Ziva leaned back on the bench, resting her back on the wall behind her. "Oh?"

"She said that she doesn't want anyone besides you looking after Aaliyah until she gets here, not even her in-laws."

"Wow." Ziva said, feeling important. "She has never even met me before."

"Well, according to Missus Yosef-Majors, she's worried that her husband's family will force her to bury him in Israel, the place she was deported from, and use Aaliyah as leverage."

Ziva's own memories of the Yosefs came rushing back, and she sighed. "That sounds correct, especially if Mohammed and Salma worked together to do it. They and their younger son, Abdul, are terribly smart. Ibrahim was just like that."

"Good to know."

Ziva smiled at that. "When do you think Rachel, her mother, and the boys will arrive, since they are coming by train?"

"Given the timeframe that she described, probably not until after you come back to NCIS with Aaliyah."

"I understand."

"You stay put with Aaliyah and then give DiNozzo a call the second the doctors give the okay about being released."

"I will do that."

"Thank you, Ziva. See you later."

Ziva echoed him. "See you later."

Ziva hung up and pocketed her phone before looking down at her middle and touching a hand to it.

"Do not worry, sweet little Rivka." she arched her back and wrinkled her nose when her daughter stretched completely out and kicked her a few times. "I have not forgotten about you."

In response, Rivka Faith kicked even more, causing it to be a few more moments before Ziva could even get up at all.

Rivka Faith didn't calm completely down until Ziva was eating.

It was going to be a long morning.


	20. Rachel

Aaliyah was fit for being released at eleven-fifteen, so after Ziva finished signing her discharge papers and Aaliyah's doctor left to go file them, she called Tony, who was all too happy to leave the office because they'd hit a dead end.

Unfortunately, a small issue had cropped up almost as soon as as she hung up. It didn't quit when Tony arrived, either.

"Oh, thank g—*hic* _goodness_ *hic* that you have *hic* arrived!"

Tony watched his best friend warily. "Ziva, NCIS is less than fifteen minutes away, and I was on my feet the second you said the words, 'discharge papers.' Do you mean to tell me that Rivka started hiccuping _that_ quickly?"

"Y—*hic* yes."

Tony looked at Aaliyah. Still in Ziva's arms, she was giggling delightedly, and though Ziva wasn't pleased about the hiccups, she was doing a bad job of keeping a straight face about it because she was laughing whenever Aaliyah did. Still, she listened to Tony as he continued.

"And Aaliyah is apparently amused by your misery… Is there anything I can do to help?"

Ziva pointed to the chair opposite hers. "H—*hic* help me *hic* prepare Aaliyah *hic* to go. A jacket *hic* and such *hic* have been *hic* provided."

Tony sat down and picked up a tiny pink winter jacket from the table beside him.

"You know," he said to Ziva. "I'm kind of glad that we have three girls and no boys yet."

"Why?"

"Because we can spoil Ella, Alison, and Rivka with dresses and princess toys and things like that, plus, girls are not as nuts as boys are."

Ziva actually snickered. "Clearly, *hic* you have never *hic* had a *hic* sister or been *hic* a teenage girl."

Tony shuddered so comically in response to Ziva's quip that it caught Aaliyah's attention, so she leaned towards him, wanting him to hold her.

"Okay, Angel Princess." Tony lifted Aaliyah from Ziva's arms and into his own. "You don't smell at all like you need a diaper change, so we'll just let Ziva chill while we get you ready to go."

Enamored by the sound of Tony's voice, Aaliyah stared up at him in wonder, hanging on to his every word. Seeing this, Tony began telling her stories from his boarding school days, which, for no reason at all, had Aaliyah laughing up a storm.

Ziva sat in the rocking chair, watching them and loving the interaction. A year ago, Ziva would have never pegged Tony for someone who was good with little kids, much less infants, but watching him even with Aaliyah, she knew that there was nobody else she'd rather spend the rest of her life with or have a family with besides Tony.

She really hoped he would propose to her soon.

* * *

Back at NCIS, Tony begrudgingly went back to his desk while Ziva set up camp in the break room. Unfortunately, Aaliyah was not content with staying in one room, so Ziva resorted to taking a stroll with her on the upper level of the NCIS office. She earned herself a lot of curious and confused looks, but she ignored them and just talked to Aaliyah, telling her about what she did for a living.

Aaliyah was very attentive, but she was a little bit less giggly when Ziva's hiccups ended.

Just as the officer began wondering when she was going to be filled in on the case, she heard someone calling for her.

"Ziva!"

Turning, she saw Jenny emerging from her office and heading towards her. The director was heavily pregnant and showing for it these days, but at that particular moment, Jenny just looked happy to see her.

"Jethro said that we'd have a visitor for awhile," she said, nodding towards Aaliyah in indication when she caught up to them. "And I'm glad I could catch a glimpse of her before her mother comes to pick her up."

"Well, according to Gibbs, Aaliyah's mother and brothers are in the area, but a ways away because of the weather." (It was now snowing very hard outside, hard enough to cause traffic delays) "And that means that we get Aaliyah for a little longer."

Realizing that she was being talked about, Aaliyah giggled and then rested her head on Ziva's shoulder before yawning hugely and rubbing her eyes.

At that, Ziva breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Thank goodness—I am very fond of this child, but my arms are getting tired, and neither Aaliyah nor the child in my belly appreciate when I am still. Perhaps they will both sleep now."

Jenny laughed nervously and then pointed to her own baby bump. "I think I lucked out because whoever this is, they are very gentle and polite enough to keep a normal sleeping pattern."

"I—oof!"

Ziva had started to respond but was interrupted by a very strong, very impatient kick from Rivka Faith. Wanting to bang her head against a wall, Ziva let out a whimper.

Sympathetic, Jenny gave her friend a back rub and gently prodded her along. "Come on. Let's go back downstairs."

By the time they were settled at the table in the break room at the table Ziva had left Aaliyah's hospital-donated belongings at, both Aaliyah and Rivka Faith were asleep. She couldn't have been more relieved.

"Please," she said as she draped a blanket over Aaliyah to keep her warm. "Will _you_ update me in the case? Have you had contact with Ibrahim's parents or my father?"

Jenny nodded. "Yes to both, but Eli has been nothing but helpful, and not just because you're his daughter or because of his respect for me and my friendship with your family."

"What on earth did he say?"

"He readily provided me with an alibi for himself about the night Ibrahim died."

Puzzled, Ziva asked, "He was in Israel, yes?"

"Yes, but he cares enough to be that thorough. He also offered to help, should the elder Yosefs become too much to handle."

"That is very nice of him. He is normally not that helpful towards anyone but me." Ziva remarked, now feeling impressed.

"It looks like he's turning over a new leaf, and that's a relief because Salma Yosef has already called me today, demanding that I let her have guardianship of Aaliyah, saying that she'd be better off with her and her family, instead of someone who ruined her first son's ambitions."

"She used the process of elimination and realized that I have her granddaughter?"

"Yes, and when I stood my ground about not giving up yours and Aaliyah's location, she hung up on me."

"That is her way—when I broke things off with Ibrahim, she called me to let me know how upset she was, but her husband called me and apologized about her afterwards."

"He did that this time, too. He called me about fifteen minutes later, apologizing for her rudeness and he also told me that neither of them have nothing to hide; the death of their oldest child has just taken a lot out of them."

"That is understandable. Have you heard anything from their other son? He is called Abdul."

"No, I haven't anything from him. Should we be concerned?"

Ziva sighed. "I have not seen him since the funeral, so I do not know. He did, however, find me after I broke things off with Ibrahim and tried to get me to reconsider. It tuned into a physical fight, but only because I knew no other way to show my power."

"But did you come out on top?"

"Of course, and he never touched me again, especially when his friends found out that he was beaten by a girl."

"How old were you at the time?"

"I was nineteen, and he had just turned seventeen."

"But he hasn't bothered you since or talked to you since Rivka's funeral?"

"Correct."

"Well, good." Jenny approved. "This doesn't mean we won't dismiss him altogether, but he'll be on my 'low threat' list."

"That is reasonable. Have there been any suspects at all?"

"Kind of, but he was let go. His name is Clayton Warner, but he's a vagrant who doesn't have all of his faculties."

"Then how was he discovered?"

"From prints Abby lifted off Aaliyah's stroller. Warner admitted to seeing if he could pawn anything, but he got scared off."

"Did he say by whom?"

"Yes and no—he described the person and that it was a men, but unfortunately, this man that Warner saw was wearing aviator sunglasses and a bandana."

"Back to the drawing board?" Ziva guessed.

"For now."

"Where _is_ Abby? I have not seen her much since this case began."

"She's down in her lab, cleaning Aaliyah's stroller and everything it because she wants everything in 'tip-top shape' when she returns it, but I think you and I both know what she's really doing."

Ziva smirked. "Nesting."

According to McGee, even though Abby had quite awhile before her due date, she'd taken to some serious nesting at their apartment, even though they were in the process of moving.

Jenny checked her watch. "Actually, she should be here with the stroller any second."

No sooner were the words out of her mouth than the woman in question walked in with Aaliyah's stroller, although she wasn't alone.

"I came to return Aaliyah's things, but it looks like—absolutely zero puns intended—I picked up some ducklings along the way."

It was true—Ducky and Palmer had followed her in.

"We just wanted see the little miss before she is collected by her mother." Ducky supplied cheekily.

Palmer was already ogling over Aaliyah. "Babies are so cute when they're asleep."

"Wake her, and your goose is cooked." Ziva warned. "Aaliyah is exhausted."

Palmer immediately backed up.

Just as he did that, a new voice joined them.

"Okay, we had to wait until Gibbs went to the bathroom, but—wow! _Everyone_ is here, even the director…"

Tony and McGee had arrived, although they immediately looked like they were having second thoughts.

Jenny arched an eyebrow. "Say it: you just want to see Aaliyah."

"We just want to see Aaliyah." Tony and McGee said in unison.

"Will one of you help me up?" Jenny stuck out her hands. "I should get back to my office."

Being the family errand monkey—Gibbs had promoted him—McGee stepped forward and helped Jenny stand.

While that was going on, Gibbs entered the room and immediately rolled his eyes.

"How did I know that you would _all_ be over _here?"_ Gibbs made shooing motions with his hands. "Everyone who isn't Ziva needs to clear out because Aaliyah's family is on their way here, as in they're walking down the hallway to this room!"

Recognizing his words as a veiled "Get back to work!" threat, everyone, including Jenny, scattered quickly, and it was just Ziva, Gibbs, and Aaliyah left.

"You've done a really good job taking care of her." Gibbs told Aaliyah as he helped her to her feet and steadied her. "I'm really proud of you."

Ziva's bottom lip wobbled slightly at the compliment—she cherished the special familial relationship she had with Gibbs and Gibbs knew it—but she channeled her feelings into kissing Aaliyah's many curly dark locks as she replied.

"Thank you, and I will take this whole experience as practice for being a better mother."

Gibbs kissed her forehead in a fatherly way. "Ziva, you're _already_ a _wonderful_ mother."

"Thank you, Jethro."

He gave her a kind smile and a soft, "You're welcome," before leaving the room.

Just as he left, a new person joined Ziva and Aaliyah: she was young like Ziva and incredibly attractive to boot, and was dressed in a warm wool dress, woolen leggings, and snow boots, on account of the dropping temperatures outside. She also looked like she'd been crying a lot recently.

When she saw Ziva, though, she lit up.

"Ziva?" she queried. "Are you Eli's daughter?"

Ziva nodded, smiling. "Indeed, and please do come closer. Aaliyah will be pleased to wake and see her ima, first thing."

Rachel Yosef-Majors approached Ziva, who gently deposited Aaliyah into her mother's waiting arms. Heart swelling with love, joy, and relief, and she began kissing her daughter and hugging her, wanting to make sure she was really there. Aaliyah woke briefly, but when she recognized her mother, she grinned happily and snuggled closer to her and fell back asleep.

"Thank you for taking care of my girl, especially when she got sick." Rachel told Ziva. "We didn't even know that she had epilepsy until she was two months old, and it's going to be something that she's going to have to deal with for the rest of her life."

"I cannot begin to imagine what it is like, knowing that a child you love and bore in your own body has a chronic medical condition, but I quite enjoyed Aaliyah and getting to know her."

Ziva looked around, wondering where her acquaintance's family was.

"You were traveling with your mother and your sons, yes? Where are they?"

Rachel turned towards the door, calling for her family, and they all entered the room from the hallway, where they'd been waiting for her summons. Just like Rachel had been, her mother and her sons were very happy and extremely relieved to see the littlest member of their family again.

"Ima!" clamored Caleb, not noticing when Ziva made a quiet exit. "Please may I hold sissy?"

Both of Rachel's boys had spent a good portion of the train trip talking about how much they missed Aaliyah and wanted to give her hugs and kisses again, especially since their father had gone to heaven, so Rachel didn't have the willpower to say no. She also wanted to talk to Ziva for a few minutes.

"And what about me?" Moses interjected, not wanting to be left out. "I want a turn!"

"Don't worry, little one." Rachel reassured him. "You may have a turn with her, too, but I'm going to let nana hold her because she hasn't had a turn yet, either."

"And because she's a grown up?"

"Exactly."

Rachel handed her daughter to her mother, who was delighted to have her granddaughter back in her own arms.

"Are you going to talk to Officer David?" Lane Majors asked her daughter, sitting in the nearest chair.

"Mhm. Will you keep an eye on the kids?"

"Of course. Go ahead and find her."

"Thanks, mom!"

Rachel exited the room quickly and it didn't take her long to catch up to the person she was looking for.

"Ziva, wait!"

She stopped at the sound of her name and turned. "Hello, Missus Yosef-Majors. Was there something that you wished to tell me?"

"Yes, actually," she nodded. "But first: I'm sure this case is long from over, so please just call me Rachel."

"I can do that, Rachel."

She smiled. "I knew about you because of Eli—he keeps pictures of you, your siblings, and your mother in his office. For as long as I've known him, he's always spoken proudly of you and I've always respected him, so there's nobody else here I'd want more to protect Aaliyah here than you."

Ziva was very flattered. "Thank you. And I am so very about Ibrahim—he was a good and honorable man, even though he and I had our disagreements. He will be missed."

Rachel knew full well of the history between her now-deceased husband and the woman in front of her, but she hadn't been expecting Ziva to say anything so kind.

"Thank you. He was the love of my life."

Ziva hesitated as as she thought of the next question, so Rachel called her on it.

"What is it? Please don't worry about upsetting me; I don't think anything else will faze me for awhile because I'm all cried out."

So Ziva asked, "Do you know yet where you are going to bury Ibrahim?"

Rachel nodded. "As much as I respect his parents and love them because they're my in-laws, I'm going to act in the best interest of my children and bury him stateside so that we can visit him when we want. And it's what Ibrahim would have wanted."

"Oh?"

"Don't get me wrong: his work at The Mossad was very important to him and he loved it, but he loved his family much more."

Ziva smiled because the devotion that Rachel was describing sounded exactly how Tony felt about her, Ella Brave, Alison Joy, and Rivka Faith. She was also glad that Ibrahim had also found a happy ending, even if it had only been for awhile.

"I see. Where is home _now?"_

"New York City—we only had the house here because we like what we say, but my friends and more of what I know is back there because it's where I lived my life before the Israel years. We're going to move in with my mom because I can't be alone and she offered help me take care of Caleb, Moses, and Aaliyah."

Noticing Ziva resting her hands in the small of her back to support some of her extra baby weight, Rachel nodded towards her bump.

"I won't keep you much longer because it was less than eight months ago that I was in that boat, but do you you know what you're having?"

Ziva beamed. "A girl."

"Baby girls are so much fun." Rachel smiled fondly. "You take care of yourself, Ziva David. I'm going to get my family ready to go, but we'll be in town until we find out who killed my husband."

"Alright." Ziva fished one of her business cards from her pocket and handed it to Rachel. "I am sure we will see you again, but if you ever need to get hold of me, this is my information."

Rachel put the card in her own pocket. "Thanks a million. See you around."

With one last smile, Rachel turned and left.

So did Ziva.


	21. Ziva's Woes

After Aaliyah left with her family, Ziva turned her attention back to the case.

"What have I missed?" she asked as she sat at her desk after seeing the Yosef-Majors clan on to the elevator.

McGee let out a sigh. "Dead ends—and a _lot_ of them, Ziva."

"McSleuth isn't wrong." Tony agreed. "Hey, does anyone think it's weird that the only people the Yosefs have talked to that are involved in this case are Gibbs and the director?"

"What _about_ her, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, walking into the break room from wherever he had vanished to and taking a seat at his own desk.

"Nothing, boss!" Tony said quickly.

"Good man." Gibbs looked to McGee. "Have you shown Ziva the sketch of the suspect yet?"

Ziva promptly asked, "There is a sketch? Were the details provided by Clayton Warner?"

"Yeah." McGee walked over to his friend's desk to show her the sketch. "How did you know?"

"The director filled me in." Ziva held out her hand. "Let me see that, please."

McGee handed Ziva the paper and she examined it, but immediately had a start.

"Oh, my God!" she cried.

Tony and Gibbs were immediately on their feet and gathered around Ziva's desk.

"Talk to us, David." Gibbs told her when they saw her put the paper back down and begin to massage her baby bump. "You recognize this man?"

Ziva nodded and looked at each of the men before her. "Everyone, this is Abdul Yosef, the one member of the family whom none of us have heard from yet."

The team was taken aback, and Gibbs pressed, "Are you sure?"

"One hundred percent, Gibbs."

"How?" McGee wanted to know. "Abby ran this picture through a few different types of facial recognition and nothing popped up."

Ziva pointed to a jagged scar on the man in the picture, just above his right eyebrow. "I gave him that scar in a fight when we were younger. If he is not with his parents right now, I doubt he would have left D.C. at all."

"Why's that? Coming from a family like this one, he should be _more_ than clever enough to hop on a plan and go somewhere else."

"Yes, but only if he wanted to make himself appear guilty—clever though Abdul is, he does not have the connections nor the money to get himself to a country, even in disguise, that has non-extradition policies in place."

"Would your father or his help if he asked one of them?"

Ziva shook her head. "No. Abdul Yosef is what is described as a 'party animal,' or at least he was, back then. All I know is that even _before_ I left Israel, he had succeeded in burning his bridges."

"Does the director know about him?"

"Yes, although by the end of that conversation, we had labelled him as a 'low threat.' Now… I am not so sure. What do we do?"

"It's more you: get on the phone with the Yosefs and ask if they've seen their son. If they don't cooperate, get your dad to lean on them until they do. Got it?"

"Yes. Anything else?"

"Ask one of them to send over a picture of Abdul."

"I understand."

After that, Gibbs, Tony, and McGee went back to their seats while Ziva picked up her desk phone and began making calls.

The only thing that panned out for the rest of the day was the Yosefs faxing over a picture of their son.

The rest of the afternoon fell through because by the time that Tony and Ziva had to leave to pick up Ella Brave and Alison Joy from Bronwyn's house, it looked as though Abdul Yosef had just vanished into thin air. Even with a BOLO, nobody had seen him.

* * *

On the way to Bronwyn's house to collect the children, Ziva became unusually quiet as dark thoughts clouded her mind that wouldn't leave her alone. So concerned was Tony that he pulled over on the side of the road, near a park, which was deserted because of the cold and the snow.

He put the car in park and turned in his seat to talk to her. "What are you thinking about, Ziva? And don't say nothing, because I can absolutely see the wheels turning in your brain."

Ziva sighed heavily and faced her beau. "I love working at NCIS, and I could never imagine working elsewhere…"

"But…?"

"What if something happens while this whole ordeal is going on?"

"Care to be more specific?"

"I mean, what if something happens, like for example, one of us getting abducted or hurt? Whom do we want to take care of our daughters, hm? You and I come from questionable families."

The concerns she was voicing hadn't escaped Tony's thoughts, either. "You don't want your dad raising the kids if one of us gets into a quandary? Is that what you're saying?"

"Indeed. I adore my father because he is my father and because he raised me, and I cannot wait for him to meet Ella and Alison, but I still do not want him to be their caretaker when he doesn't even know them."

"Then who would you want to their guardian if something happens to us during this case?"

She thought for a minute, then said, "The Llewellyns, because they know them so well."

"I like that idea, too. How about we ask them when we get there?"

"That sounds like a good plan."

Ziva blew out a breath and massaged her middle when she felt Rivka Faith give her an extra hearty kick.

"What about after this case, Tony? What if both of us get abducted or seriously hurt at some point? Who will be their guardians then?"

Tony sighed, but only because the thoughts of his daughters without him and Ziva there to protect them caused his heart to twist into anxious knots. He had never been a crier in general, but the knots definitely tugged at his heartstrings.

"Ducky and Autopsy Gremlin are out. I like them, but no."

"What of Jethro and Jennifer?"

"I love them both as much as you do, and they're also as good as parents to me, but…"

"They are getting old, and they will have their hands full when their own little one comes." finished Ziva.

"I'll give you that because it's reasonable, but you realize who that leaves, right?"

"Abigail and Timothy."

Tony snickered. "Can't you just call them Abby and McGee?"

"Not right now. What is the phrase that describes this version of guardianship and care-taking that we are discussing right now?"

"Godparents."

Grinning, Ziva said, "Then sometime soon, maybe on Ella's birthday, when we have the family over, we can ask th—"

Ziva's words ended in a scream when she saw something bad outside, just over Tony's shoulder. When Tony turned, he immediately saw what had Ziva upset: a big white van had pulled up to the side of their car and the door slid open. Two men jumped out, and while one opened Tony's doot and knocked him out with the butt of his gun, the second man wrenched open Ziva's door.

 _"Abdul?"_ Ziva cried when she saw him. _"No! No! No!"_

"Shut up!" he hissed. "Shut up and get out before I force you out!"

Properly scared, Ziva got out of the car and let her abductor lead her to the van and shove her inside. Because of her time in The Mossad, Ziva had had plenty of training in what to do in the instance of kidnapping, and she'd even been taken on two other occasions. Things were different this time because she was in a committed relationship and had three children, one of whom was kicking and stretching out in her womb at that moment. Cooperation was more than important right now.

It just made her heart ache that the last image that she had of Tony was of him slumped unconscious over the steering wheel and bleeding.

* * *

They drove and drove for awhile, and because the back of the van had no windows, there was no way for Ziva to tell where they could be going. Eventually, they arrived in what Ziva deduced to be some kind of warehouse because when the van came to a complete stop, she heard something like heavy automatic doors shutting behind them.

"Okay, Abdul, what is this place?" asked Ziva. "Where are we?"

"Quiet!" he snapped as he took her from the van and frogmarched her forward. "Keep walking, Ziva, lest I get my gun out again!"

For the sake of hers and Rivka Faith's immediate safety, she fell quiet and observed her surroundings: she was in a storage warehouse at the docks that looked like it was used to house the exports and imports for the cargo ships, and judging by the building's well-kept condition, it was used regularly. The living space Abdul had set up and was occupying with a few other people—all Israeli, Ziva noticed when they started whistling at her—was a high-trafficked area, and she had no doubt that someone was getting paid to make sure that the dockworkers outside were looking the other way.

After they exited the living area, Ziva was brought to a small room that looked like some kind of office. One of Abdul's cronies was already there, beating someone one up, shoving her around and laughing almost barbarically, not caring that the person before him was begging for mercy.

Though Ziva was occasionally known for her own violent tendencies, she was no monster and she abhorred seeing an innocent person get hurt. That was why, she felt her heart jump into her throat when she recognized who the other person was.

She gave a loud, upset shriek of, _"RACHEL!"_ before she wrenched herself out of Abdul's grasp and ran to her friend to protect her. The assailant back off immediately—Ziva was off limits and hurting her was punishable by being shot and/or pushed into the water outside.

Ziva's heart turned over and sank when she took in Rachel's pale color and weakened state, on top of all of her bumps and bruises. Whatever was going on with her wasn't normal.

"Oh, Rachel," Ziva sighed as she took off her jacket, sat down and held her friend in her arms. "What have they done to you?"

"Z-Ziva?" Rachel rasped, immediately feeling safe when she recognized her companion. "H-how d-did y-you get h-here?"

"Never mind, my friend. You do not look well, so I am going to look after you."

Rachel wanted to be helpful, and in spite of her weakened state, she did her best. "I-I'm diabetic, a-and I j-just h-had a hypogl— hypo—"

She couldn't finish her words and was already stuttering because of how drained her system was, but Ziva had spent enough time in Autopsy at NCIS to know exactly what Rachel was driving at.

The officer looked up at Abdul and barked, "Give me Rachel's purse!"

"Do you take me for an idiot?!"

"Only if you cannot see that she is ill—you have my word that I will not call for help! I just need to see if she has medicine; I trust that you do not want her any sicker, yes?"

Deciding that Ziva had a point, Abdul found Rachel's purse, took out her phone and tossed the bag to Ziva. She caught it and emptied the contents on to the floor, knowing exactly what she was looking for.

When she found it, she passed it to Rachel, asking, "Is this what you need?"

It was an insulin injector pen.

"Y-yes." Rachel answered.

"Where does it go?"

Rachel pointed at her left hip.

Working fast, Ziva lifted the left side of Rachel's shirt, uncapped the pen and administered the medicine. It took a few moments, but when Rachel's medicine kicked in, ending her hypoglycemia attack, she was able to sit up straight and fix her shirt.

Sneering at Abdul, Rachel said, "I _told_ you not to bring her! I told you _no!"_

Since that Rachel was out of the woods, Abdul's compassion vanished instantly, and he spat at her feet. Outraged by his behavior, Ziva protested, and for her troubles, she received a slap to her cheek that had her seeing stars. It had been so fast, that even if she'd tried to stop it, she would have ended up on the floor.

"What the hell was that for?" Ziva demanded as Abdul straightened up and brushed imaginary dust off himself. "I have done nothing but cooperate since you took me, but can you not see that I am with child?"

"Of course I can, Ziva, but may that strike serve as a warning to not talk back or get any ideas about escaping!"

Ziva began to protest again, but Abdul and the other man left the room, locking the door tightly behind them.

When Ziva turned back to Rachel, she jumped when she saw her in tears.

Doing her best not to scare her, Ziva moved closer to her and spoke softly. "What is it, Rachel? How can I be of help?"

Rachel shook her head and kept crying. "I'm so sorry, Ziva. I'm _so_ sorry."

Ziva had all the confidence in the world that someone at NCIS would have realized by now that she and Rachel were missing, and that Tony was injured, but when she heard Rachel begin to recite The Lord's Prayer in Hebrew, she began to wonder just how much trouble they'd gotten themselves into.


	22. Meanwhile

Tony woke abruptly by someone rapping on his car window. He had a throbbing headache, and he became stricken with panic when he remembered what had happened, but he turned his attention to who was at his window. Seeing who it was, he had a start, although only because he hadn't seen her for a few days.

 _"Mabli?_ What are _you_ doing here?" Tony asked, sitting up and rolling down his window.

Mabli Llewellyn, Bronwyn's wife, was a doctor at the Walter Reed Military Hospital in Bethesda, and the road they were on was part of the route she took to get home.

"I could ask you the same—you aren't looking so hot, Tony. Unbuckle your seatbelt and open your door so I can examine you."

He did as Mabli instructed and she examined him, he blurted, "We have to call 911 and NCIS."

"I agree on the 911 part because I want you to go to Bethesda to have a minor concussion checked out, but why NCIS?"

The story came tumbling out, and by the end, Mabli was horrified and as horror-stricken as Tony, but she kept her head and called for an ambulance while Tony called Jenny.

* * *

Over at NCIS, Jenny and Gibbs were just about to leave to go home for the day—they lived together now at his house—when who should come through the door, but the strangest posse they'd ever seen: Rachel's mother, Lane Majors, along with all three of Rachel's children, as well as Eli David, and Mohammed and Salma Yosef.

"What's happening?" Jenny asked cautiously, immediately setting her things on her desk and sitting in her chair again. "Why are all of you here?"

Slightly hysterical, it was Lane who answered first. "Rachel is missing!"

Gibbs queried, "Miss Majors, are you certain?"

Lane gave a nod as she sat down on the couch with Caleb, Moses, and Aaliyah. "Yes—she was supposed to meet me at the hotel to pick up the kids because I was watching them for her, and then we were going to go have dinner with Eli, Mohammed, and Salma at the hotel restaurant, but Rachel never showed up."

"How long did you wait, and when was the last time you saw Rachel?"

Lane thought about it for a moment. "I last saw my daughter two hours ago because wanted to get clothes for herself and for the kids to wear when we bury Ibrahim. She also wanted some time to herself, and I can't say I blame her for that. Even before Rachel became a mom, she's always been incredibly punctual, responsible, and trustworthy for anyone her age. We waited for an hour and a half, but when she didn't show up, we decided to pack up and come here."

Remembering something, Mohammed Yosef added, "And even back in Israel, if she was going to be late to an appointment or something of the like, she would always phone ahead or at least text, to be courteous because Rachel is as polite and charming as she is brilliant."

"No notifications of any kind have happened yet." Salma chimed in. "One would have, by now. Something is wrong with my daughter-in-law."

Jenny held her hands in the time-out position. "Have _any_ of you heard from Abdul recently, or picked up any activity from him?"

"No," the rest of adults in the room answered.

At that, Jenny sent out a quick group text to Tony, Ziva, Abby, McGee, and Palmer, summoning them all to get back to NCIS as fast as possible before she spoke again.

"Alright, then. My best advice is for everyone to get comfortable here because NCIS is the safest place until Rachel is found and rescued."

Jenny looked at Gibbs, who was perched on the corner of the desk, and when he met her gaze, the look he gave her said that he knew exactly what she was thinking.

"I'll get Miss Majors and the kids settled in the break room."

"Please do, and please take the Yosefs with you. I'll be down in awhile to check on everyone."

"Alright."

Gibbs shepherded out of the room, and then it was just Jenny and Eli.

"What about me?" the old man asked, puzzled.

"You and I are going to wait for Ziva and everyone else because I sent them a text telling them to turn around and come back here so we can start working the case."

Jenny also didn't know how to say it, but she also wanted Eli because in spite of the dark deeds in his past, they were still friends and if she couldn't have Gibbs with her, Eli David made her feel just as safe as Gibbs did.

It was quiet in Jenny's office only for a little while because before long, Abby, McGee, Ducky, and Palmer showed up, each in their winter gear and each looking concerned.

"Jennifer," Eli said suddenly, turning to his friend. "I count four of your people here, and Gibbs is downstairs yet, but where are Ziva and Tony?"

"Rule Thirty Nine: there's no such thing as a coincidence." Jenny, Abby, McGee, Ducky, and Palmer said at the same time, out of habit.

Slightly taken aback by how many people had answered, Eli said, "Excuse me? What is this about rules?"

"It's part of a code that Jethro lives by that he passed on to the rest of us." Jenny explained quickly. "I—"

But what Jenny had to add to that was never found out because her phone rang and when she reported that the Caller ID had Tony's name, they all fell quiet instantly.

"Tony, what is it?" Jenny asked when she answered her phone. "Where are you and Ziva? Did you guys get my memo about turning around?"

"Well, _I_ did, but I can't say the same for her because she was abducted, and I've only just come to from being knocked out in the last fifteen minutes."

"Oh, my God. Are you at least getting attention from any kind of paramedics?"

"Yes—they and the police are both here."

"Hand the line to someone in charge. Now." Jenny said in an authoritative tone.

While she waited, Jenny put her hand over the phone receiver and spoke to the others.

"I don't know all the details at the moment, but Tony and Ziva were just carjacked: he was knocked unconscious and is just coming to, and Ziva was kidnapped!"

An alarmed buzz broke out from the others, but stopped almost right away when Jenny held up her hand for silence and turned her attention to Palmer.

"Jimmy," (he immediately stood at attention because it wasn't often that Jenny spoke directly to him or even go as far as to use his first name) "I need you to run as fast as you can down to the break room, tell him what's happening, and come back with him, pronto!"

"On it!"

Just as Palmer left, Jenny was finally connected with a medical professional, and she found herself talking to Mabli, who gave her a rundown of the situation, as far as Tony was concerned. When that conversation ended and she hung up, Palmer had returned with Gibbs in tow, the latter of whom assumed authority.

"Is DiNozzo being taken to Walter Reed?" he asked Jenny.

She nodded. "Yes. Mabli Llewellyn found him and wants him checked out for a concussion."

Gibbs turned to McGee. "I want you to go downstairs and issue a BOLO for Ziva and Rachel, and then start pinging their phones."

"Got it, boss."

"And I need to know, just yes or no—is it possible to do all of that from a laptop?"

"Yes."

"Good. You get a start on that, and when you have it, take Abby with you to the Llewellyn house and bring them all here. The last thing we need right now is for Ella, Alison, or any of the Llewellyns to go missing, too."

Knowing the silver-haired man as well as she did, Abby piped up, "And I'll call Bronwyn to tell her what's happening."

"That's good work, Abs." Gibbs praised, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Now go ahead and go."

Abby and McGee left quickly.

"Where does that put Mister Palmer and myself, Jethro?" Ducky inquired.

"You are going to come take a ride with me to see DiNozzo."

"And me?" Palmer asked, feeling nervous now. "I mean, I know you're not my boss, but…"

Gibbs looked at him, sly like a fox in a henhouse. "You, 'Autopsy Gremlin,' are going to stay here with Directors Shepard and David, and help them, however they need."

Gibbs and Ducky gathered their things and left the office, leaving Palmer with Jenny and Eli, feeling about as safe as gazelle at a watering hole.

He hoped everyone would hurry back soon.


	23. Rescue Me

The office that Ziva and Rachel were being kept in had windows, but unfortunately, they only looked out onto the docks outside, and subsequently, the ocean. Ziva had already promised not to escape, and she wouldn't have tried because of everything and everybody that was at stake. However, she also didn't take too kindly to being shut in small spaces because Rivka Faith was used to her mother being able to walk around when she was restless, like she was at that moment, in order to soothe her, but that option wasn't available, and it was driving both her and her mother insane.

* * *

Worn out, Ziva sat in the chair at the office desk and rubbed her eyes to keep from crying, even though she was a few steps of it.

"What's wrong?" asked Rachel. "Are you claustrophobic?"

Ziva looked over at her friend, who was perched atop a nearby filing cabinet. "No, I am not claustrophobic; I have been imprisoned in spaces a lot smaller than this one before. The problem is that I am carrying an _incredibly_ fidgety child, and she is annoyed."

"Why is that?"

"She fidgets and kicks constantly, and when this happens, going on a walk suffices because it always calms her."

"You did a lap or two in here."

"Yes, but I have made her dizzy, and she is not pleased."

"Aaliyah kicked me more than Moses and Caleb did." Rachel said reflectively. "Maybe it's because she's a girl…"

In spite of the situation, Ziva smiled a little bit and put her hands on her middle as her daughter moved around. "I still would not trade any of this because I love being pregnant."

"I loved it, too. I loved being pregnant with the twins, but I was desperate for a daughter, as well."

"What did you do when you learn that your desperation had been fulfilled?"

"I wept with joy—I had a sister before I was born, but she passed away when my mom was still pregnant with me. My dad left after my sister died and I've never met him, but my mom says they fought a lot and that there was no fixing anything. From what I've been told, we're better off without him."

"I am sorry." Ziva said sincerely.

"Thank you, but it isn't all bad—Eli has been keeping an eye on me like a dad does these past years. Does that bother you?"

"No, because my father is a good, good man once you get to know him, and he has already lost the rest of his children besides me. What was your sister's name?"

"Aaliyah, actually. My mom was into beautiful-sounding names, and Aaliyah means exalted."

"So you wanted a daughter to name after your sister?"

Rachel nodded. "She was eight when she died from pneumonia, but before she passed, my mom said that Aaliyah chose my name—Rachel Mariah Rose. My mom also said that Rachel was excited about me and that she would have loved my kids, and also that she has a namesake."

Ziva pointed to her big belly. "This is Rivka Faith Abigail DiNozzo."

"DiNozzo?" Rachel echoed, eyebrows raised in interest. "As in you and Agent DiNozzo?"

"Mhm. He is not hers or her sisters' biological father, but he loves them all just the same, and is going to adopt them formally when Rivka is born."

Rachel arched an eyebrow. "If you don't mind my asking, Ziva, how many children do you have in addition to Rivka Faith?"

"It is long and complicated, but I have two more daughters: they are named Ella Brave Hope and Alison Joy Constance. Their parents are no longer in the picture, but I have adopted them, so they are mine and they are happy. They are the baby's big sisters."

Rachel was curious now. "And how old are Ella and Alison?"

"Ella will be three in a few days on Christmas, and Alison is now nine months old; she turns one in March and stands a chance of sharing a birthday with Rivka Faith."

"And Rivka was your mom's name, right?"

"Yes. We named the baby for her."

"I've seen her picture in Eli's office—she was very beautiful." Rachel complimented. "Where did the Faith part of her name come from? Someone in Agent DiNozzo's family?"

"His mother, and also the middle name of the NCIS director, and she is like a surrogate mother to us."

"That's adorable. Where did Rivka Faith's middle name come from—Abigail?"

"Another member of our team. She is like a big sister."

Rachel smiled a little more. "Abigail is a Hebrew name."

"Indeed, yes. How versed are you in the language?"

"Quite well—it's my second because I studied it and the Israeli culture for years before I left to study in Tel Aviv. I sometimes remember or say things in Hebrew, like a reflex."

"Such things as The Lord's Prayer? I know it when I hear it, Rachel, and I have most definitely heard you say it since we have been in this room."

"I can recite The Lord's Prayer in four languages, including Hebrew. My mom taught it to me in English and German when I was a kid, and I've always found it comforting, just as you find your Star Of David necklace does—Eli told me that you never take it off when you are awake."

Ziva touched a hand to her necklace but said, "When Abdul shut us in, you said that you had told him not bring me here, yes? You _knew?"_

"Only because he had told me what he was going to do; I swear I didn't know before today."

"I believe you. Carry on."

Composed, Rachel continued, "I met Ibrahim after you two ended things, and as near as I can figure, just before you left Israel to come here, and it was love at first sight. Even Salma and Mohammed liked me, and they were happy that I mended Ibrahim's heart because he was very sad. Ziva, do you think it's weird that Abdul took us?"

"You mean because I was almost his wife, but you actually were and you bore three of his babies?"

"Yes."

"Then allow me to say that I do no _not_ think that it is weird, no."

Rachel breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Then that makes this next part a little easier, but no less awkward: Mohammed and Salma told me a long time ago that they don't expect me to convert to Judaism if I don't want to, but they asked that I at least wear a head cover, since I married their son."

Ziva nodded in understanding—in Jewish culture, it was traditional for married women to wear things like scarves to cover their hair, a kind of message to other people that they were taken.

"Did you?"

"Happily so, and I have dozens of scarves."

Rachel's hair was uncovered at the moment, and it was dark brown, shoulder length, and voluminous.

"Why is it uncovered now?"

"I was ridiculed something fierce by neighbors in the old neighborhood when I went back to New York with Moses and Caleb, and it got so bad that I stopped."

Ziva looked over at Rachel, studying her. "Did it make you proud to wear the scarves?"

"Yes, and it made me feel connected to Ibrahim and his culture."

"Then keep doing what makes you proud, no matter what anyone says. Just be yourself."

"I will, Ziva. Thanks." Rachel told her. "I'll start again after we get out of here, as a way to honor Ibrahim's memory."

Almost immediately after she finished saying that, she shuddered as she remembered something.

"I completely respect the religion of Judaism and the culture and history, but _Abdul_ is the one who has never liked me from the start."

"Because you were born in the United States?"

"Correct. He actually thinks that _you_ would have been better for Ibrahim, and that _I_ should have never even looked at him in the first place. I don't care to know what happened between you and Ibrahim or why it ended, but he was the absolute love of my life. Abdul just couldn't see it that way. He _still_ can't, actually."

"Be honest: do you think that Abdul would go after one of your children or you?"

"Normally, I would say no, but he took you even when I begged him not to, so anything is possible."

Ziva asked her next question softly, with caution. "Rachel, I am asking this because I must, but do you think that Abdul could want to kill you?"

"Yes. I really think he would." Rachel's bottom lip trembled and hot tears began to fall down her cheeks. "His cronies out there don't know that I can speak and understand Hebrew, and he kept me out there until he left to get you just so I could hear him engage the others in ideas on how to hurt me in ways that would really drive my family insane."

Rachel pulled her knees up to her chin.

"I always knew this kind of thing could happen to me because I knew what I was getting myself into when I met Ibrahim and found out where he worked."

Rachel burst into tears.

"Everybody out there is under Abdul's command, and if he's taken down, they'll go down with him, either for him in a fight against the police or else because he'll have killed them, but _I_ just want to _live!"_

Ziva felt as sad as Rachel did, but she still eased herself and crossed over to her friend to where she was perched atop a low filing cabinet. Unequipped with the squirrelish agility that Rachel had, Ziva stood next to her and held her in a warm embrace.

"I will take care of us, my friend. I will."

"Really?"

Ziva nodded and made soothing noises. "I will."

Rachel exhaled shakily and leaned back into the other woman's hold while Ziva wondered just when the NCIS team would be coming to rescue them.

* * *

Back at NCIS, there was no doubt that Abdul was behind everyhing, so all of the adult members of the Yosef-Majors clan, as well as Eli David, were questioned by the director (and McGee, when he returned), only to find out the same things that Rachel had told Ziva. The only difference was that even in separate interviews, both of the older Yosefs acknowledged that their son was up to no good and that they did not support what he was doing, but they also begged for him not shoot him because they wanted to be held accountable for his actions before he was arrested.

* * *

Over at the Walter Reed Military Hospital, Tony wasn't doing so hot.

True, he did have a concussion, but it wasn't much to worry about, not was the goose egg he was now sporting, where he'd been struck in the head. His injury, while it had taken awhile to clean up, only required butterfly bandages in terms of patching up. What was worrisome was that he was uncharacteristically quiet.

"What's wrong with him?" Gibbs asked Mabli as they, together with Ducky, stood in the doorway of Tony's room.

"Technically," said Mabli as she consulted the notes. "Nothing."

"He is _never_ this quiet." Ducky added. "It doesn't _look_ like shock."

"It isn't—it's the ends of an adrenaline crash because he's been quiet for awhile. He'll be fine." Mabli glanced at her watch. "I'll go file these and then head back to NCIS with you guys; my family is there and I need to see them."

Gibbs nodded understandingly and let her go before he and Ducky entered Tony's room.

"You okay, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

Tony jumped, snapping out of his reverie when he realized that he wasn't alone.

"Gibbs and the Duckman! How are you guys?"

Ducky answered the question with one of his own. "What about _you,_ Anthony?"

Tony sighed, his shoulders sagging. "Upset and ashamed that I couldn't stop Ziva from getting taken, but otherwise totally functional—Doc Mabli cleared me. Who's got my daughters?"

"Bronwyn does." Gibbs informed him. "She's at NCIS with your kids and hers, as well as Eli David, Mohammed and Salma Yosef, Lane Majors and Caleb and Moses and Aaliyah, the director, McGee, Abby, and Palmer."

"Okay, Abdul Yosef isn't there because I saw him take Ziva, but what about Rachel Yosef-Majors?"

"The circumstances are unclear, but she was abducted while shopping."

"Oh, God."

Gibbs put his hands on his underling's shoulders and looked him square in the eyes. "It's all hands on deck, and everyone is doing everything to look for Ziva and Rachel. Do you understand?"

"Yes, boss." Tony said seriously.

"Is your head in the game enough to help?"

Tony nodded. "Yes, boss. I'm good, and I really want to see Ella and Alison."

"I'm sure they could use hugs from their dad."

Tony smiled gratefully and looked at the two men before him—Gibbs had always been as good as a dad to him, and Ducky, an uncle. It wasn't often that he admitted it, but he really did value their friendship.

"I was going to ask Ziva to marry me at the NCIS Christmas Gala," Tony said in a tone of confidence. "But I'm going to ask her the second we get her out of wherever she and Rachel are."

Tony's friends patted him on the back and congratulated him, just as Mabli returned and made her presence known by knocking on the door.

"You guys ready to go?" she asked when the men looked over at her.

"Totally ready, doc!" Tony stood and gathered all of his belongings, including his jacket. "Let's hit the road!"


	24. Interlude

Ella Brave saw Tony when he returned to NCIS.

"Abba-leh, Abba-leh, Abba-leh!" she cried, tearing out of the break room and making a beeline towards where he was in the hallway. "You're here, you're here!"

Tony picked her up and held her close in a hug. "Hi, Princess Ella! I'm _so_ happy to see you!"

"Me, too! You!"

Ella gave him a squeezing hug and then looked into Tony's eyes, feeling sad.

"Ima is lost, and also Aaliyah's."

"I know, Ella, but we're going to find them." Tony motioned towards the others. "Uncle Jethro and Uncle Ducky will, too."

Ella Brave blew kisses to them and looked back at Tony.

"You sure?" she asked seriously.

Tony nodded and then kissed his daughter on the top of her head. "I am _absolutely_ sure, my tiny love. How about we go check on everyone else, hm?"

Ella Brave nodded in approval and snuggled against Tony as they headed into the break room. Gibbs and Ducky brought up the rear.

Everybody was very pleased to see Tony and that he hadn't been knocked out of commission, but out of everything, nothing brought him more relief than when he was able to hold both Ella Brave and Alison Joy at the same time and give them hugs.

His _daughters._

He may not have been there when they were born or had any help in creating them, but he was wrapped around their little fingers the moment he'd met them and loved them like his kin ever since.

However, something was different about tonight. He couldn't place what it was, but he it felt like he loved them even more than ever, kind of like a turning point. Maybe he'd ask Ziva when they found her what her turning point was.

When Alison Joy saw Tony, she was incredibly happy, but also very sleepy, as it was almost her bedtime. This resulted in her getting the giggles and then literally laughing herself to sleep in a matter of minutes.

Tony didn't want to leave her or Ella Brave, but when he realized that they were both going to be in very safe hands, he handed his children to Bronwyn and Mabli and then left with the rest of his team to the bullpen.

Five minutes later found Tony, Jenny, Gibbs, McGee, Ducky, and Palmer all powwowed around the plasma, looking at tracking information for Ziva, Rachel, and Abdul. It was a map of the area, with two dots close together, and the other on a different part of the map, altogether. Pictures of the people whom the dots belonged to hovered above who they belonged to.

"Someone tell me what we're looking at." said Gibbs.

"We're looking at," McGee began. "The last known whereabouts of Ziva and Rachel, as well as Abdul Yosef, too."

"And?"

 _"And_ Rachel was last seen at the Fairview Mall in Foggy Bottom three hours ago now. Uniforms are holding down the fort because it's a crime scene."

Abby held her hands in a time-out position. "How in the world did they know how to call us?"

"Rachel dropped her purse and shopping bags when she was taken, and one of the uniforms went through it looking for her ID, and they found Ziva's card. There was no answer, obviously, but one of the other uniforms at the scene is a friend of mine and recognized Ziva's name, so he called me and here we are."

Gibbs edged his way back into the conversation. "McGee?"

"Boss?"

"Finish here and get to Foggy Bottom, ASAP. You're going to run point on that part of the investigation."

"Yes, boss." McGee turned back to the plasma screen and blew up Ziva's and Abdul's pictures first. "The only recent activity on Ziva's card is from yesterday."

"We went grocery shopping last night," Tony remembered. "And it was her turn to pay, so she did."

Continuing, McGee showed a quick display of Abdul's financials. "Abdul seems to only have one card, as far as I've seen and the last time it was used was when he arrived with his family to the hotel. He ordered two back-to-back pay-per-view movies on HBO."

"Moving _on,_ Tim." Jenny said pointedly.

"Right." McGee nodded before presenting them with a different screen, a satellite phot of a stretch of road in town. "According to data from local cell phone towers, it looks like Ziva's and Abdul's phones were last pinging in this location, but unfortunately, both of their phones have been quiet for awhile."

"They dead?"

"Hopefully that, and not destroyed."

Jenny spoke up, surveying the team. "Who knows how to turn on phones remotely, and I mean at all?"

Abby put a hand in the air. "Me! I do, director!"

"Hop to it, Abby, and try Ziva's phone first because it'll probably be easier. Call me the second you've had a break."

"On it!

Abby left as fast as she could and Jenny turned her attention to Tony.

"Where did you and Ziva get carjacked?"

Tony glanced at the picture. "Five Mile Road."

"Do you remember anything else? That's quite an area to cover, and it's not that far from the back roads."

"It's a little fuzzy." he confessed. "Mabli can probably remember more than me since she found me there."

"Good call. I'll talk to her." Jenny turned to McGee again. "What can you tell us about Rachel's movements at the mall?"

McGee shrank Ziva's and Abdul's pictures before enlarging Rcahel Yosef-Majors' picture. "Her transactions line up with what the director told me about Rachel being at the mall: after parking in the east parking lot, she went to the food court and purchased from Subway at six-ten and after that, the next transaction, still at the mall, was at five past seven."

"What store did she go to?"

"Macy's—it's one of the anchor stores at the mall, and she bought a new dress and a new pair of boots."

"Where did she go next? Her mother told us that Rachel wanted to be alone, but that she also went shopping to get things for her and the kids to wear to the funeral."

McGee double-checked the transaction list on the screen and pulled up the information so the others could see it, too. "After Macy's, Rachel went to the Gymboree store and bought tuxedos for her boys, and a dress for her daughter. The kids have new shoes, too."

"And after that?" Jenny pressed.

"No more transactions, and it goes dark as far as the money trail is concerned."

Tony spoke up. "I hate to be that guy, but is there anything like footage of Rachel's abduction?"

"Yes—I've already been in contact with mall security." McGee pressed another button on his remote. "Here it is."

They all watched together as a video screen popped up on the plasma and a video of Rachel's abduction began to play.

Thankfully, it was a digital file, so nothing was grainy and everything was in living color, but still, Tony reflected as they watched, it didn't make watching Rachel recognizing her brother-in-law, dropping her bags as she tried to fight him off, and going limp from something he injected into her neck through a syringe before he tossed her over one shoulder, like a sack of potatoes.

"Timothy," Ducky said. "Rewind it a moment."

McGee did while Gibbs queried, "What do you see, Duck?"

The man in question signaled for McGee to pause and then said, "Please blow that up, specifically at the hand that Abdul is using to inject Rachel."

McGee did as asked and offered the remote to Ducky when he moved forward. The old man took it and with his free hand, and pointed to the syringe.

"Obviously, Abdul didn't knock her out with a blunt object, but it looks like he chose a drug, instead."

"You mean like a roofie?" Tony suggested.

"Not quite." Ducky looked over at his underling. "Mister Palmer, what do you think would make Rachel collapse like that, besides a roofie?"

Next to Tony, Palmer began to wrack his brain. "Given the way she went down, it looked like he gave her something like ketamine, doctor."

"Ketamine?" Gibbs echoed. "That's _veterinary_ medicine."

Palmer nodded. "Sometimes, yes, and it probably is in the this case, going by how fast she went down, and it is available to buy at clinics, I think, but a guy as creepy as this one probably bought in cash so he would raise the least amount of red flags possible."

Everybody stared at him in surprise.

"What?!"

Tony clapped a hand a hand on Palmer's shoulder. "We've never heard you say that much in one go, Autopsy Gremlin. There may be hope for you yet."

"Oh." Palmer laughed nervously, having expected something worse. "Okay."

Gibbs looked at him. "Are you good with computers, Palmer?"

The young, bespectacled man gave a nod. "Yes."

"When we're done here, go down to Abby's lab and work with her to draw up a list of all the local clinics that sell ketamine! Get me a picture of Abdul Yosef, too!"

"Understood!"

Gibbs looked at Ducky again. "See anything else that we should take notice of?"

Ducky pointed to Rachel's wrist. "That is a medical ID bracelet, but I can't quite make out what it says. Can anybody else?"

Tony stepped forward to give it a whirl, and after a moment, turned back to the others. "Part of the bracelet is covered by Rachel's jacket sleeve, but the word I definitely saw says 'diabetes. Rachel is a diabetic."

Working her way back into the conversation, Jenny brushed imaginary dust off her clothes and then rested her hands on her middle as she felt her baby kick and nudge her, bored. "I'm not going to put off a conversation with Lane Majors any longer, especially now that we know her daughter has a chronic medical condition. I would appreciate Ducky accompanying me."

At the sound of his name, the medical examiner handed the plasma remote to McGee again before following Jenny out of the room.

Everyone else looked to Gibbs.

"You all have assignments!" he barked. "Go on and scatter!"

Everybody did, and in the shuffle, Tony turned to Gibbs. "Uh, boss? You didn't give me an assignment."

"That's because you and I are sticking together until Ziva and Rachel are found, or until I say so. Am I clear?"

"Crystal."

Through the process of elimination, Tony realized that he and Gibbs were going to be chasing down the lead about ketamine.

Sure enough, when Palmer came back, he had a list of all of the local veterinary clinics that sold ketamine, Gibbs took the list, grabbed his gear bag and ran to the elevator. Tony gave Palmer an apology about Gibbs' behavior and then a thank you for the list before following Gibbs.

Tony found himself praying for the first time in forever to God, asking for Ziva and Rachel to just make it through the night.

* * *

Ziva and Rachel, meanwhile, were scared out of their minds. Not fifteen minutes ago, a firefight had broken out after Abdul's men picked a fight with him about how slow things were going. By Ziva's count from when she'd been brought in, there were five men, including Abdul, at the start of the firefight, but at the end, Abdul was the last one left standing. They had no idea what he was up to, only that he was trigger-happy and looking for any excuse to fire his weapon again.

His target?

Rachel.


	25. Don't Let Me Go

As the hours dragged on, Ziva's concern grew even more because try as she might, she couldn't figure out what Abdul's endgame was because him killing off his men had really thrown her for a loop.

One thing she knew for sure was that in the early hours of the morning, just before daybreak, she woke up feeling very sick.

Rachel woke not long after.

"What is it?" she asked Ziva as she gave her a back rub. "Are you going to be sick?"

Ziva shook her head and blew out a breath. "No. I feel nauseas, though. Did you ever get sick when you were pregnant, Rachel? Other than the normal things?"

"The first time, I was carrying the boys, and I found out about the diabetes. I got sick when I was almost six months pregnant with Aaliyah, and _that_ time found out about the hypoglycemia. I was always healthy when I was a kid, but things change when you grow up." she sighed. "I had a diabetic attack a week before the boys were born, and I had two hypoglycemic attacks when I was carrying Aaliyah; I'm amazed that nothing worse has happened to her, other than the seizures."

"I hope that it is neither of those things, but something still feels off with Rivka." Ziva sat on the floor and leaned against the wall. "I need her to be alright."

Rachel sat beside her. "It may have something to do with us not having any food or water—I'm feeling it, too."

"Will you be alright?"

"I hope so, but I also hope that we get found soon because I have never been so uncomfortable before."

"Let me know if you're going to get sick though, alright? You took care of Aaliyah, and now me, but you aren't doing so hot."

Rachel gave Ziva a gentle prod.

"Come on—lay your head on my lap, and I'll keep watch."

"But—"

"I don't know what it's like to be in a stress-filled job occupation, but I do know how to look after someone who has one." Rachel patted her lap, indicating again for Ziva to lay down. "Come on."

"Oh, alright." With a little bit of adjusting, Ziva did as Rachel asked and laid down, resting her head in her lap. "If I sleep, you will wake me if something happens, yes?"

"Of course. Now rest your eyes—Rivka will appreciate it."

"Okay, Rachel. Thank you."

"You're welcome." Rachel caressed Ziva's hair. "Just rest your eyes and relax now."

Ziva did, but only because she was quite certain that she would have been ill if she'd stayed upright or awake for much longer.

This was torture.

* * *

Abby had been able to turn Ziva's phone, but she hit a wall because while the GPS chip in it showed it was at the docks, that still meant quite a lot of ground had to be covered because the docks in Washington, D.C. were nothing to sneeze at.

Only because Abby worked long into the night to crack Ziva's phone and because she had two gestating babies in her belly, she agreed to sleep instead of working all the way through the night.

That turned out to be a really good idea because though Palmer's epiphany turned out to be brilliant on his part, it fell through because after seven clinics, nobody recognized Abdul Yosef's picture.

Unfortunately, they couldn't launch an actual rescue until the morning time because it wasn't until then that Abby was able to completely nail down a location for where Ziva and Rachel were being kept. It was on tenderhooks that she saw McGee, Gibbs, and Tony off in the NCIS van before going up to MTAC with Jenny, Ducky, and Palmer. The guys had nothing else to do, so Jenny invited them along, and Abby had already been asked to help monitor the operation. Suffice it to say, none of them wanted to be alone.

* * *

Ziva came to abruptly when she felt Rachel patting her face gently.

"What? What it?"

"Get up." Rachel pulled Ziva into a sitting position, stood, and pulled Ziva to her feet. "Up, up, up."

Quite perplexed, Ziva followed Rachel across the room to a huge closet. Thankfully, it was big enough to fit them both, even when Rachel closed the door behind her.

"I heard someone out there engaging Abdul in conversation."

Ziva's heart leapt. "That has to be Tony with Gibbs and McGee—we are _safe,_ Rachel!"

Seeing that Ziva's mind was beginning to slip, Rachel spoke sternly. "Use common sense: they still have to take out Abdul, or at least arrest him first!"

"That is true…"

"After everything that's happened since Ibrahim first turned up dead and you found my daughter, it's time I return the favor and protect you and your daughter." Rachel continued. "Ziva, you're as good as a sister now and you're also my friend, too; I would never be able to live with myself if something happened to you or to Rivka Faith on my watch."

"Thank you…"

Ziva's words trailed off because she really wasn't feeling well now.

"Come on, Ziva." encouraged Rachel.

"I am trying…"

Rachel reached out and held Ziva's hand. "Squeeze my hand, okay, Ziva? Come on."

Ziva did, and through the darkness and muffled gunfire on the other side of the wall, she spoke. "Please do not let me go until we are safe."

"I promise I won't."

"Thank you, Rachel. Thank you."

Indeed, on the other side of the wall, Gibbs, Tony, and McGee had engaged Abdul in a firefight, but remembering his parents' pleas to not shoot him, they worked together to corner him and apprehend him without the use of bullets. In the end, Gibbs did the arresting and took Abdul out to the squad car.

Tony and McGee called for the uniforms outside to come in so they could assess the scene.

"Ziva?" Tony Called as he and McGee walked around the room, looking for them. "You guys can come out now!"

McGee spotted the office first and pointed out. "They're probably in there, Tony. Let's check it out."

Tony called again for Ziva and Rachel, but they didn't respond, as they were still in hiding, so Tony broke the door down. After a quick moment of looking around, he and McGee saw the closet and approached.

Tony called out again. "Ziva? Rachel? It's finally safe to come out!"

"Will you open the door, Tony?" asked Rachel.

Tony did, and when he saw Rachel, she was beaten and battered, a little dirty, dehydrated and even tearstained, but also holding up a half-conscious Ziva.

"I don't know what's wrong with her," Rachel said fearfully. "But I can't hold her much longer."

Moving quickly, McGee moved Rachel out of the way while Tony took Ziva in his arms and sat with her on the floor.

He gave her a gentle hug and a kiss on the forehead. "Ziva, I'm so happy to see you!"

Ziva looked up at her beau. "Tony? Is that you?"

"Yes, it's me. What's going on? You don't look too good."

"N-nor do I feel it."

"Are you going to be sick?" Tony asked cautiously.

"No, but I cannot stand without help."

"That's not g—Ziva!"

Tony's words ended in a cry of alarm because his girlfriend had fainted clean away in his arms.

Listening in from MTAC on a headset, Jenny spoke to Tony, her voice coming into his ear through his ear piece.

"Tony," she said in the tone of a panicked mother. "What's happening?"

"Ziva's fainted, and she already wasn't doing well!"

"Hang in there—I'll make sure help gets to you guys, pronto!"

True to her word, the director sent ambulances to their location, and while some fussed over Rachel, a whole team of them fussed over Ziva.

"Sir," said one of the paramedics as Tony made to follow the rest of the team as they began wheeling Ziva away on a stretcher. "Are you her husband?"

"No," Tony said in a tone that suggested he wasn't to be trifled with as he flashed his badge. "But she is my partner, and the mother of my children. Please let me go."

Recognizing the urgency of Tony's tone, the paramedic stepped aside quickly and Tony arrived at the ambulance just as they were loading Ziva in.

Without one ounce of hesitation, both of the paramedics pulled Tony aboard and closed the door behind him, signalling for the driver to start driving.


	26. Tony And Ziva

Ziva woke with a start.

"Tony?"

"Right here, babe."

Ziva surveyed her surroundings to see that she was on a bed in a hospital room, and that Tony was in a chair beside her bed. He was watching her with a mixture of relief and concern.

"How are you doing?" he asked her.

"Sore and lightheaded. What has happened, and where is Rachel?"

"You're in the hospital, and so is she, but she was pumped with ketamine when she was taken, so at the moment, she's getting what's left of it pumped out of her system. She had enough in her body to knock out a small animal."

"And yet, she still managed to take care of us."

Tony sat on Ziva's bed and smiled at her. "That's because Rachel is a fighter and a survivor, just like you."

Ziva smiled and then let out a soft moan of discomfort as she felt Rivka Faith give her a hard kick.

"And just like Rivka Faith, too."

Ziva looked at her middle and saw that while she was dressed in a hospital gown and even had on a plastic ID bracelet affixed around her left wrist, her middle was exposed and hooked up to a few things that were monitoring Rivka Faith's health. Ziva also noticed that she, herself, was hooked up to a nasal oxygen tube, as well as patches and wires on her chest that were monitoring her heartbeat, along with an IV line that was feeding a saline drip into her system through the inside of her right elbow, and even a blood pressure monitor on her right index finger.

It was with this hand that she grabbed Tony by his shirt collar and pulled him close to her, staring him down with her best evil eye.

"Anthony," she growled. "You are striking about the shrub, and I do not like it."

"That's actually 'beating around the bush,' but good try."

Ziva tightened her hold. _"What has happened?"_

Ever so gently, Tony undid Ziva's hold and straightened up. "You were diagnosed with mild anemia, and it did quite a number on your system because since you were without food and water."

Ziva leaned back and spoke in a normal tone. "I understand. Are the baby and I healthy?"

"Yep—Doctor Vanderbilt was already here when you were admitted, so she's overseeing you and Rivka Faith right now."

Doctor Vanderbilt was Ziva's OBGYN, and they got along well.

"She was the one who informed you of everything that you have just told me, yes?"

"Yes, and she said that the anemia isn't life-threatening to you or the baby. She also said something about folic acid tablets, but to be honest, I blanked out after she said that you and Rivka are going to be fine."

Ziva smiled and then touched a hand to her middle just in time to feel Rivka faith run her knees under her palm.

"If _we_ are here, then where are Ella and Alison?"

"Out in the waiting room with Bronwyn, Mabli, Eva, and Rose."

Eva and Rose were the Llewellyn children. They were both in early elementary, but like their mothers, they both adored Ella Brave and Alison Joy.

"Is there anything else?"

Tony paused, thinking. "The director, Abby, Ducky, and Palmer are all still at NCIS, and Gibbs brought Abdul back, so everyone is probably going to watch the interrogation."

"What of Mohammed and Salma?"

"They visited Rachel, but also went to watch the interrogation. They do send their best to you, though."

Ziva smiled at that, then asked, "Where are Rachel's mother and sons?"

"Lane Majors has hardly left her daughter's beside, so she's most likely still there. She's also been looking after Caleb, Moses, and Aaliyah, too."

"I want to see them before I go."

"Well, Rachel isn't going anywhere, at least until tomorrow, at the latest. That's what I heard when I checked on her a little bit ago."

Ziva was touched by her boyfriend's thoughtfulness. "Tony, where are McGee and my father?"

"Tim is in the waiting room—he checked on Rachel, and now he's waiting to see you."

"He has more than earned the title of brother in my eyes now. Is my father in the waiting room, too?"

"Eli will not budge until he sees you."

"That sounds like him. Has he freaked McGee out yet?"

"Surprisingly, no. They're bonding."

Ziva opened and closed her mouth a few times, perplexed. "I do not know how to respond to that."

Tony laughed. "Neither do I, but speaking of bonding, Eli has met Ella and Alison."

"How did that go?"

"He adores them, and they adore him—it's perfect."

"I want to see the children. Will you go get them, please?"

"Sure thing." Tony stood and stretched. "I'll be right back."

Ziva watched him go, but then she felt like she blinked, and in what felt like no time, Tony was back. The comical thing was that while he was carrying both of the girls in his arms at the same time, Ella Brave was fast asleep and Alison Joy was wide awake.

Tony laid Ella Brave with Ziva, and she immediately her close in a hug, kissing her on the top of her dark locks.

"Oh, I missed you, Ella." Ziva whispered to her. "Sleep well."

Tony said, "She was up throughout the night because she was having nightmares, and she wouldn't say it, but they were about you being gone—I heard her crying for you in her sleep."

"How long has she been asleep at the moment?"

"According to Bronwyn and Mabli, almost thirty minutes."

"Then we shall not disturb her." Ziva reached for her other daughter. "Let me hold her, please."

Tony leaned Alison Joy on Ziva's chest, and Alison Joy let out such a sigh of contentment that Ziva thought her heart was going to explode from relief and love.

"I missed you, too, my sweet baby Alison, and I am very pleased that you are awake now because I wanted to see your eyes and your smile."

Right away, Alison Joy propped herself up and smiled at Ziva before curling up again.

Tony said softly "Alison's been as happy as a clam."

"Did she notice that I was not home?"

"Oh, yes—she's definitely slept since you've been gone, but she has literally not been this calm for hours."

"Alison just needed her Ima—oof!"

Ziva let out a soft grunt when she felt a pair of tiny feet kick her in the side.

"Rivka missed her sisters because she is kicking crazily now."

"Like Pop Rocks? Tony asked curiously.

"What are those?"

A twinkle appeared in Tony's eyes as he realized the opportunities that Ziva's question had opened up. "Let's just say that you shouldn't go trying them any time soon because Rivka wouldn't appreciate it too much."

 _"I_ would appreciate—"

But Ziva's words were drowned out by Ella Brave waking up from her sleep and sitting up like a mummy as she cried out.

"Ima!"

"Right here, dear little friend." Ziva reached over and rubbed her daughter's back between her shoulder blades. "Turn around."

Ella Brave did, and when she saw Ziva, she breathed her own sigh of relief and very delicately, kissed her mother's hand.

"You are safe?" the little girl asked.

Ziva nodded. "Yes, and so is your sister."

Noticing Ziva's external oxygen supply, Ella Brave tapped her own upper lip. "Ima, what this is?"

"It is to help me breathe better." Ziva indicated the rest of the things she was hooked up to. "All of these are to help me get better so that I will be able to go home and give kisses and hugs to you and Alison."

Ella Brave nodded in approval and then turned to Tony. "We can go to Nanny Bronwyn, please?"

"In a little bit, kid. Let's let Ima see if she's up for visitors first; you just close your eyes for now."

Ella Brave gave another nod, curled up next to Ziva, and was instantly out like a night again.

"What was that about?" Ziva asked.

"Bronwyn and Mabli offered to watch the girls overnight for us because they noticed how tired we all are."

"That was nice of them. Where are you going to sleep?"

"In this room, with you. I don't think I'll be able to spend another night away from you, any time soon."

"I feel the same way, my dear, and speaking of visitors, will you go get everyone who is in the waiting room?"

Tony nodded as he stood. "Anything that you want after that?"

"For it to just be you and I, but also for a visit from Doctor Vanderbilt—I am desperate to eat."

"Then we'll make sure things go by fast."

* * *

Indeed, the visits went by very fast, including the one from Doctor Vanderbilt, during which she informed Ziva that she didn't need the IV drip anymore and that she was allowed to eat. After Vanderbilt removed the drip and disposed of it, she checked Ziva's and Rivka Faith's vitals one more time and left to get food to bring back.

In the meantime, Tony sat with his girlfriend again and just looked at her with nothing but love.

"What is it?" Ziva inquired when she noticed how quiet her partner had gotten.

"I'm just thinking about how much I love you, and also about how scared and worried I was when you all were gone."

"I never once had any doubts that we were going to be found, but I had also never been more scared."

"Oh? Ziva, you spent the last half of your associated with or serving The Mossad—you had to have been in _crazier_ situations _before_ now."

Ziva nodded in confirmation. "Once, when I was fifteen, I got lost during a patrol in the woods while in enemy territory."

"But aren't you from the desert?"

"Yes, but as soon as I was able to handle a gun, I was sent off on missions elsewhere, and not too long after Jenny wandered into my life, I accompanied her on a trip to Istanbul, acting as her bodyguard. Making a long story shorter, many things went haywire, and I ended up with a broken leg."

"And the director?"

"Two stitches on the right side of her forehead, but other than that, nothing else."

"Any more crazy situations you want to share?" Tony asked in fascination.

Ziva thought for a moment. "You know I was partners with Jenny in a post-9/11 counterterrorism task-force, yes?"

"Yes."

"Well, two-and-a-half years ago, she and I were chasing someone on our Most Wanted List. We chased him from Beirut to Damascus, and then to Cairo, and when we caught up with him there, Jenny and I worked together to catch him."

"Did you succeed?"

"Yes, and I shot him, myself, but not before _he_ shot Jenny in the leg. We made it back to Israel, and she couldn't travel much, so she lived with us while she was in therapy to rebuild the strength in her leg again. That mission is how we became as close as we are."

Tony was hanging on to every word now—he'd always had a tremendous amount of respect for the NCIS director, but knowing that she was a gunshot survivor, on top of everything else she been through, made him respect her even more.

"How did she survive? Where were you guys, exactly?"

"I fashioned a tourniquet out of my shirt and tied it around her leg, and after awhile, I had to cauterize her wound when it became bad. As for where we were, it was in an old, abandoned building in the marketplace, but nobody could get to us because on the same night we gave chase, there was a massive sandstorm that made us lose contact with our people for more than a day because the sand was that bad. I was also 'knocked out of commission,' as you might say."

"Did you break your leg again?"

"This time, I sprained my right ankle. We both made it out and recovered, eventually, but Jenny has been both a sister and a mother to me ever since."

"Wow."

"I have many more stories, most of which involve her, so I could go on..."

Tony laughed. "No need, Z—I believe you, and I have to say that I'm _very_ impressed."

"Thank you." she smiled briefly, but then it faltered. "For everything I have been through, even in the 'pre-Shepherd years,' I was the most frightened this time around, because this was the first time I have been in such trouble while with child."

Both she and Tony looked at Ziva's big belly, and on impulse, Tony covered it in kisses.

"I'm so glad you're okay, too, Rivka." Tony told his youngest child. "I can't live a day without your mother, your sisters, _or_ you. I don't ever want to."

He pressed more kisses down and, and when Rivka Faith pushed back with her hands, feet, and elbows, he talked to her even more.

"Oh, I can't wait to meet you because I love you so much already. And you know, when you _do_ come, you'll have to be patient with me because I'll be wanting to count your fingers and toes at least twice; Ella is almost three, and Alison spends most of her time scaring us by trying to walk, or else being enthralled by her jack-in-the-box toy. I've never been a dad to a newborn before, but I'm really looking forward to that." Tony pressed a few more kisses to the bump, laughing softly when Rivka Faith kicked even more, like she was showing interest. "I'm also looking forward to asking your mother something."

Ziva ran her fingers through Tony's hair, getting his attention. "What is the question?"

Sitting up, Tony reached into his inside coat pocket and pulled out the engagement ring—he'd put it in his pocket that morning before leaving home—and showed it to his girlfriend.

Ziva's heart caught in her throat—she was so wiped out that she really hadn't seen this coming, and now she was wide awake.

"Tony, that was my _mother's!_ How—"

Tony pressed a smoldering kiss to Ziva's lips and when he pulled away, he held her hand.

"Ziva, from the moment I first saw you, I realized that you were someone I wanted to get to know, and before long, I found that I was falling in love with you. After all of our adventures, especially this most recent one, I've really come to realize that I can't imagine the rest of my life without you there as my partner at work and at home, as my best friend and my companion, and," he leaned forward and kissed Ziva again. "As the mother of and to and all of our beautiful children, present and future. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Ziva sat up and responded immediately. "Tony, of course I will! Yes!"

Fingers trembling slightly, Tony slipped the ring on to Ziva's left ring finger and then pulled him close to her, kissing her and hugging her.

Ziva deepened the kiss, never wanting the moment to end.

It felt like they were the only two people in the universe.


	27. Closure

To Tony's dismay, Gibbs wanted him back at NCIS to see Abdul's confession. He didn't want leave his new fiancée, but found the willpower to do so when Ziva gladly welcomed a few more kisses on her lips and baby belly. After making Tony promise not to tell their NCIS family about the engagement until things were calmer, Ziva bid her future husband farewell.

At NCIS, Tony found Gibbs, Jenny, Abby, Ducky, Palmer, and Eli David and Mohammed and Salma Yosef all in the observation room that looked in on the interrogation area. The only one missing was Lane Majors, but that was because she was looking after her grandchildren.

Abdul Yosef was on the other side of the glass, pacing the room and stewing in anger. He knew he was at the end of the road now and that nobody could or help him now, not even the local embassy because everybody knew of his tarnished reputation.

"Good of you to join us, DiNozzo." said Gibbs.

"Traffic was crazy." Tony replied quickly, realizing that he was still on Cloud Nine.

Jenny raised an eyebrow. "Tony, what's with the cheeky grin on your face?"

"Nothing." he said quickly, clearing his throat and becoming serious, even directing his attention to Gibbs. "Are you going to make him talk now?"

Gibbs nodded. "Yeah. He's had time to sit, stew, pace, whatever, so that's my cue to go in and ruffle some feathers."

Gibbs left the others and joined Abdul in the other room. Everyone else gathered around the glass to watch.

"So."

"So what?" Abdul echoed back.

"Do you want to tell me why you did what you did?"

Abdul pretended to play dumb. "You are going to have to be more specific than that, Agent Gibbs."

From a file folder that Gibbs was carrying, he extracted an array of pictures and laid them out on the table in front of Abdul. They were all of Abdul's dead body.

Abdul remained impassive. "That is my brother, and he is dead."

"Because _you_ killed him!"

"What proof do you have?"

Gibbs laid out a new set of pictures atop the previous ones. "For starters, try pictures of your fingerprints all over this, _bonehead!_ You had gloves on while you killed your brother, but you took them off to move your niece's stroller behind a dumpster?"

"I did not want her to see her father die."

Gibbs leaned forward. _"Start talking."_

Out came a story of sibling rivalry and about how Abdul had had enough, deciding that killing his brother was the only solution.

"What I don't get," Abby said, her hands cradling her huge swollen middle where her children were kicking and turning around inside. "Is why take Ziva _and_ Rachel? I mean, there are the obvious reasons, but there's also probably something that the rest of us aren't seeing."

"Just wait." Jenny told her. "He'll get it out of him."

They all turned back to the glass again.

In a fierce demanding tone that offered no middle ground, Gibbs barked, "Why did you take Ziva and Rachel?"

Abdul just sneered. "My brother always had the best of everything, but after he let Ziva end things and after Ziva bested me in a spar, Ibrahim had to go and marry an American woman who had not one, but three of his children—I could not just let that go! Ziva would have been better for Ibrahim than Rachel, any day!"

"Well, that's good enough for me."

Gibbs got to his feet and handcuffed Abdul as he recited the Miranda Rights to him before handing him over to the LEOs who had been waiting out in the hallway.

When Gibbs entered the viewing room, it was to find everyone shocked or subdued.

"All of that," Tony was saying. "Because Abdul was jealous? I know jealousy is about as primal as it gets, but his own _brother?_ Come on!"

Ducky raised an eyebrow at the man who was like a nephew to him. "Think of Cain and Abel."

Tony calmed immediately. "Good point."

Salma waved a hand in dismissal. "Either way, Abdul is dead to us now, and we will not help him anymore."

Mohammed nodded in agreement with his wife. _"Rachel_ is our child, now, more than ever."

"He is right. Now if you all will excuse me, I have to place a call to Lane."

Salma thanked the team as she left and headed out into the orange corridor, in the direction of the bullpen. Mohammed and Eli copied her actions.

Jenny left after them, saying that she was going to call Ziva to update her on the situation. Ducky and Palmer left, too, and then it was just Tony and McGee left with Gibbs.

At that moment, Tony was thinking of what to get for Ziva when he went back to the hospital so he could keep them (but mostly her) entertained until she could be released, while McGee was trying desperately to remember if it was his turn or Abby's to pick the next movie for their movie night, which was that night, and if they'd already watched Nightmare Before Christmas that week. Simply put, Tony and McGee just wanted to relax and unwind, now that the case was over.

But Gibbs brought them back to reality with a head slap each.

"Just because we solved the case, that doesn't mean the paperwork gets to be ignored! You know the drill!"

"Yes, boss!" was all the two men said before hurrying out of the room.

The rest of the day was going to drag.

* * *

It even dragged for Ziva, although for a different reason.

She was delighted to get a call from Jenny about the closing of the case, but not long after hanging up with her, the baby started acting out, and Ziva didn't know how to fix it.

She was desperate for a distraction.

"Ziva?"

She looked up at the sound of her name. Allowed to sit at the table by her window, but still hooked up to an external oxygen supply and back on an IV drip, Ziva lit up at the sight of her visitor.

"Abba-leh, hello!" she waved Eli over. "Come in, come in!"

Grinning, Eli hung his things up and closed the door behind him before joining his daughter, sitting across from her.

"How are you, my child?" he asked. "It has been a _long_ time since you have called me that."

"I am pleased that the case concluded—Jennifer has already informed me of the interrogation and Abdul confessing."

"Good." Eli approved. "I also saw the confession."

"I am just pleased that I can now move on to focus on my life, my beautiful daughters, and Tony."

As she said her fiancé's name, Ziva showed her father her engagement ring.

Now overcome with joy and pride, Eli examined the ring on his daughter's finger and hugged her.

"Mazel tov, chickpea!" he told her when he sat back down. "When did this happen?"

"When it was just Tony and I, just before he was called back to NCIS."

Impressed, Eli remarked, "He was called for to see the interrogation, as well, and he was looking both pleased with himself and also quite cheeky. Jennifer called him out, but he still would not say what it was."

"We are keeping things quiet, but you are my father, and I wanted to tell you. Tony will understand."

"I promise not to tell, Ziva."

"Thank you, Abba—that is appreciated."

"I am so very happy for you and Tony, though."

Ziva made to say something nice about her fiancé, but instead just made a whimpering sound as Rivka Faith began kicking steadily in a way that almost hurt.

At her father's politely puzzled expression, Ziva began to explain.

"Rivka is a fidgety child, but today she is quite literally being a pain in my side, as she is currently laying horizontally. I am required to be on external oxygen and IV fluids for as long as I am here—which will be overnight—but Rivka has been positioned this way for nearly two hours."

"Is there anything to be done?"

"The doctor suggested me sitting at this table."

"Are you hoping to trick Rivka Faith since you are not lying down?"

"Yes, but she is being ridiculously stubborn about things yet."

"It appears she has inherited her mother's feistiness." Eli said with a twinkle in his eyes. "Is there a second option if Rivka still does not cooperate?"

Ziva indicated the claw-footed pole beside her that her oxygen tank and IV fluid bag were mounted on. "Putting these on a more sufficient pole, perhaps with wheels, and going for a stroll until Rivka changes position again. I am most certain that that will be the next course of action."

"You were like this with your mother, as was Tali." Eli said in a tone of recollection. "Strolls always cured things."

"That is comforting, Abba."

Eli smiled and then said, "Ziva, did Ella's and Alison's biological parents partake in Christmas?"

"I would assume so. Why?"

"I am going to New York with Rachel and her family after she is released tomorrow, so as to go to Ibrahim's burial, but I was wondering I could home back to give presents to my grandchildren."

"That would be so wonderful. In fact, what is the date today, please?"

"The twentieth."

"And Ibrahim is to be buried when?"

"The twenty-second. What are you thinking about?"

"On the twenty-fourth, we are having the annual NCIS Christmas Eve Gala, and I will be performing. Will you come to see me?"

Ziva had inherited her singing ability from her mother, and Eli had always loved hearing Ziva sing, too. It had been quite awhile since the last time he had.

"Of course!"

Ziva beamed. "Then you can come to see us on the twenty-fifth: it will be Ella's third birthday, as it is, and I can show you our new house!"

Eli felt his heart fill up with love towards daughter because his greatest wish for her had always been for her to be genuinely happy… and now she was. Coming to America had really been good for her.

"I will be happy to come, chickpea, and I am really looking forward to it!"

 _DING!_

Eli's phone indicated that he had a new text. Quickly excusing himself, he read it and responded, before tucking the phone back in his pocket.

"That was Mohammed—he and Salma have been visiting Rachel, but they are now currently in the waiting room. They want to see you."

"Oh. I would very much like to see them."

"In that case," Eli stood. "I will go tell them, and see you on the twenty-fourth, at the gala."

"Alright—I will see you then, and send the information to you before long."

Eli came around the table and held Ziva's face in his hands, placing an affectionate kiss on her forehead, something she'd loved since she was a baby. "I am so very proud of you, and your mother would be, as well. Everything we have ever wanted for you is coming true."

"Thank you, Abba. See you again soon."

After giving his daughter one last hug, Eli collected his things and left.

Mohammed and Salma arrived shortly thereafter.

"May we sit with you?" Mohammed queried.

Ziva's table had three chairs around it.

"Yes, and I would stand, but doing so is a little difficult at the moment."

"Please do not be ceremonious on our account." Salma told her as she and he husband sat with her. "We just wanted to visit you before we go to New York. How are you and the baby faring?"

"I am recovering and being kept overnight to be monitored, and the baby is content, although I am currently trying to get her to change positions because she is being silly."

"But you two will be fine, yes?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes, and thank you for your concern, Salma."

Curious, Mohammed asked, "Ziva, does your child have a name yet?"

"Rivka Faith Abigail DiNozzo."

Only slightly nervous, the officer showed her former almost parents-in-law her engagement ring.

"My partner has just proposed to me, and I told him yes."

"Mazel tov!" they told her in unison.

"Thank you for taking care of Rachel, too." Mohammed added. "If you or your family or your team ever find themselves in Tel Aviv, our doors are open."

"I will be sure to pass along the message, Mohammed. Thank you." Ziva said sincerely. "I am also deeply sorry that it was Abdul who killed Ibrahim. He was a good man, even if things did not go well between he and I."

"Thank you for your sympathy."

"But I am pleased that Ibrahim could be happy with Rachel and have a marriage and a family with her. Truly."

"Thank you, Ziva. That is very, very kind of you." Salma told her.

Mohammed contributed another thought. "And we are happy that _you_ are having your happy ending. You are a wonderful person."

Mohammed and Salma weren't monsters, nor unkind, but that was definitely the nicest thing either one of them had ever said to her before.

As a result, tears formed in her eyes and as she wiped her tears away, she said, "I feel a bit repetitive, but thank you again."

Mohammed stood, and Salma followed his example.

They spoke in unison again. "You are welcome, Ziva."

They all exchanged their goodbyes, and Ziva watched the older couple go before turning her gaze to the outside view. It was of a garden that Ziva could only assume was nice when it was in bloom, but now, it was the dead of winter, with snow threatening to come any day now, so it looked particularly bleak.

But she wasn't going to let a cold, frozen-over, unblooming flower garden get the best of her mood, nor even that Rivka Faith had yet to change positions, because more than anything else at that particular moment, Ziva felt incredibly loved.


	28. The Officer And The Judge

Eli and the Yosefs were not the only people to visit Ziva that morning, but the arrival of the next visitor definitely surprised her.

"Judge Amos! What are you doing here?"

For Judge Deborah Amos was now standing in her doorway.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Ziva was getting ready for a stroll, and so as to maintain her modesty, she had on a gown with a closed back and was also wearing scrubs for pants. She also had slippers on her feet, and was still hooked up to quite a number of wires and monitors that were hooked up, along with her IV bag and oxygen tank, to a wheeled metal pole, just like she had predicted. She was just missing a jacket, but was wishing that the wires that were monitoring hers and Rivka Faith's health weren't stuck to her with such a strong adhesive because she already knew that they were going to be a literal pain to take off.

"No, actually. You are not interrupting anything." the officer told the judge. "Please—come in."

Deborah entered the room and set her things aside before sitting in the chair beside Ziva's bed.

"Jenny called me and said that you and a friend have just been through an ordeal."

"That is putting it mildly," Ziva said as she swung her legs from where she was sitting up on her bed. "But yes."

"Jenny sent me to check on you—she really wants to come, but will not be able to make it until evening visiting hours. Would it be alright if I visited with you right now?"

"Yes," chirped Ziva. "And your timing is actually wonderful."

"Oh?"

Ziva pointed to her middle. "My daughter, she is lying horizontally, and since nothing has even stirred her to want to change positions, the next tactic is going on a stroll."

"And that is what you are prepping for now?"

"Yes, and I would love it if you would join me if you have the time."

There was a twinkle in the older woman's eyes. "I have off the next three hours, my friend."

Ziva perked up. "The nurse has just gone to fetch a jacket for because I am feeling chilly, and she was going to walk with me, but I think it would be easier for both my daughter and myself if we were in the company of a friend."

"Is there anything I can do to help at the moment?"

"Will you please help me to stand? I am a bit wobbly on my feet."

Deborah helped her up, and just when Ziva had regained her center of gravity and no longer feeling as though she had jelly legs (she blamed it on an adrenaline crash that had happened after Tony left), the nurse returned with a jacket for her. After introductions, and some quick assistance with the jacket, the nurse left Ziva and Deborah to their own devices.

"Ziva," Deborah began after they'd been walking out in the corridor for a few moments. "I noticed the ring on your finger—mazel tov to you. It was Agent Tony DiNozzo, was it not?"

"Thank you," Ziva told her. "But how did you know…?"

"That it was him? I did some digging around after my visit to NCIS, and after that, it was a process of elimination."

"I see."

"I also did some digging around, as far as your becoming a citizen is concerned, and I found something that you will want to share with your fiancé, just to consider."

"There is an 'unforeseen circumstance' clause that says in the circumstance of something like an unplanned pregnancy, so long as you still complete the studying and take the Oath Of Independence and pick a date within six months of the day of the ceremony to wed, you can still become a citizen."

Ziva felt something like relief lift from her shoulders. "Thank you, judge. I shall tell Tony later."

"You are quite welcome, and you are welcome to call me Deborah."

"Alright. I will remember that, Deborah."

They kept walking together. Nothing was wrong with Ziva's ability to walk, per se, but she was feeling a little steamrollered from the events of the last twenty-four hours. That, coupled with Rivka Faith laying in an awkward position, slowed her down, but Deborah was patient, and Ziva soon found that the other woman was very patient and very easy to talk to.

"May I ask you something personal?" Ziva asked at length.

"You may."

"How long have you known Jenny?"

Deborah smiled. "I have known her of old... twenty-five years now."

"How did you meet her?"

"I do a lot of humanitarian work in addition to being a judge, and it often takes me overseas. At one time, I had to go to Israel, and as it was dangerous times and my husband was not permitted to come because he is a civilian, I needed a bodyguard."

 _"I_ was recommended by my father to be _Jenny's_ bodyguard when she was directed to The Mossad five years ago on her search for one almost five years ago. Was she recommended for you?"

"Indeed, and I owe Jenny my life because she saved it many times, especially in The Gaza Strip and The West Bank. Why are you asking these things?"

"Because Jenny and I have been as close as we are ever since a particularly dangerous trip to Cairo two-and-a-half years ago. She was shot, and I kept her alive, but she lived with us for a year in Israel while she underwent serious physical therapy to recover. She is now my foremost boss at NCIS, and even after our partnership at a different task-force..."

"You are curious about her?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes, especially since she is now something like a mother, sister, and a teacher to me, and I have the utmost respect for her."

"I know many, many things about Jennifer Faith Shepard, including that she is as courageous and as loyal as they come and will willingly put her life on the line if it means protecting who she loves. In fact, my husband and I adore her and cherish her friendship so much that she is as dear as one of our own kin, and she is even the godmother to all of our children."

"And how much is 'all' in this instance?"

"Twelve. Solomon and I have twelve children."

Ziva stopped in her tracks and stared at her friend in shock. "You have _twelve?"_

"We had six, and then adopted six more over the years from an orphanage in Bethlehem. The age range is twelve to twenty-six. The youngest two are still at home, but the older ten are still in college or have graduated and made lives of their own—Solomon and I have a brand new granddaughter named Emily."

Awed now, Ziva remarked, "Wow. I have always dreamed of having a large family—what is everybody's names?"

"Chaim is our firstborn, and he is married to Emily's mother, but then it goes Yocheved, Thaddeus, Jafeth, Ishmael, Shoshona, Haviva, Nadav, Mahala, Elim, Zimora, and Zion."

"What beautiful and rich names."

Deborah beamed. "Thank you—everybody proudly bears the name to which they belong. Chaim, Yocheved, Thaddeus, Jafeth, Ishmael, and Shoshona were born consecutively, and Ishmael and Shoshona are twins."

"Is everyone that you just mentioned a biological child?"

"Yes."

"What about the others?"

"Haviva and Nadav were already siblings when we were told about them, and Mahala is technically their cousin."

Ziva was hanging on to every word. "What became of their first families?"

"As we understand it, they had no other siblings and their parents died from violence in The Gaza Strip just after they were given up as babies. Haviva is twenty now, and Nadav and Mahala are nineteen."

"That was good of you and your husband to not separate them."

"It was the right thing to do."

"I understand because I had an older half-brother of whom I did not know until I was four and my sister was one. My parents adopted him when his family was killed." Ziva explained. "How did Elim come to join your family?"

"He came from the same orphanage as Haviva, Nadav, and Mahala. The orphanage contacted us, asking if we were interested in adopting again and when we saw Elim's picture, we said yes immediately."

"When did you and Solomon go meet him to bring him home?"

"A few weeks later. He was one, and he has been an Amos ever since."

"That is ten children." Ziva said, keeping track on her fingers. "What of the last two, Zimora and Zion?"

"They are not biologically related, but the way the story goes is that that they were found homeless and wandering the streets of Bethlehem when they were two. Good Samaritans found them and brought them to the orphanage."

"Were Zimora's or Zion's families ever found?"

"Yes, but also not alive and other people from their old neighborhoods who knew them didn't want them. When we were told of the girls, they had already been at the orphanage for six months and inseparable."

"Are they the same age?" Ziva wanted to know.

"Yes, and when we adopted them, we had to rehabilitate them because they were a tad feral, but it was completely worth it."

"They are happy now, yes?"

"Extremely, and they had a joint bat mitzvah last week to celebrate turning twelve. In fact—look at this."

Deborah pulled up a picture on her phone and showed Ziva.

"I took this of them before we left the synagogue for the afterparty. Zimora is on the left, and Zion is on the right. They remind me of you, actually."

The youngest Amos children were beautiful with lean builds, olive-colored skin colored skin, with delicate features, brown hair, and brown eyes. They were wearing matching purple dresses, white stockings, and gold flats. They also both had a matching pink tallit shawl each draped over their shoulders and lace head coverings that looked like handkerchiefs tied into their elaborately-styled hairdos. Both girls were both grinning broadly and looking like they were having the time of their lives.

"They are very beautiful, Deborah."

"Toda." Deborah replied as she pocketed her phone. "How are _your_ babies? Ella Brave and Alison Joy, correct?"

"Yes, and they are both beautiful, happy, healthy, curious, and intelligent little girls, always learning new things. Ella is keen on learning Hebrew, so she calls Tony and I abba-leh and ima."

"If you want your children to learn foreign languages, it is very important to start teaching from an early age. I grew up speaking Hebrew and English, and when I met Solomon in primary school, I taught him."

"And your children have all grown up speaking Hebrew and English, too?"

Deborah gave a nod. "We also encouraged them to pursue foreign languages in school, and they have all ended up using those languages as a third language."

"Smart children."

"Will you be teaching Hebrew to the baby in your belly?"

"Mhm, and most nights, I read to her in Hebrew. She really likes it, because that is when she kicks me the most."

"Does she have a name yet?"

Using the hand that was not toting along the IV/oxygen pole, Ziva framed her middle. "She is named Rivka Faith Abigail DiNozzo, and she is due to be born in March."

 _"My_ birthday is in Mar—Ziva?"

All of a sudden, Ziva was wrinkling her nose and plastering her hand over her bump while with her other hand, she reached for Deborah.

"Give me your hand, please."

The judge did as asked and then watched Ziva as her face and body went through a series of emotions and physical states before landing on relief. After about a minute, Ziva let go of Deborah's hand and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Rivka righted herself, and I think she is even falling asleep."

Deborah gave Ziva a gentle back rub in maternal way. "Do you feel better? I had this problem when I carried Yocheved, but she was far more stubborn than Rivka apparently is."

"I feel much better, thank you."

"Then would you like to keep walking and circle back," (they were only in the middle of the corridor) "Or do you want to return to your suite?"

Quite pleased that neither she nor her daughter were no longer suffering from discomfort, Ziva held her hand to her middle and broke into her broadest grin yet when she felt Rivka Faith's heels press hard against it as she dozed.

"I would like to keep walking. Would you stay with me before you go to see Jenny?"

"Of course." Deborah told her. "Is there anything that you would like to talk about, in particular?"

"How many adventures _have_ you had with her?"

"Oh, many. Israel was not the only time that I asked her to be my bodyguard."

"Could you tell me another story about one of those adventures?"

Deborah paused for a moment, thinking, and then said, "Well, there was this one occasion in Thailand..."

And they continued on down the corridor, talking and laughing, and trading even more stories, eventually about each other and their families, behaving as though they'd known each other for years already.

It was the start of a beautiful friendship.


	29. Jenny And Jethro

Jenny and Gibbs were enjoying a quiet night in.

Ever since Jenny had moved in with Gibbs, they'd not only turned into even more of a couple than they already were, but for the first time in what was far too long for either of them, they were keeping normal hours because they had each other to come home to, and that was always a comforting thought, especially when work became hard. The home they were making together was their safe haven.

That was why, by nine that night, after a visit to Ziva and Rachel at the hospital, both of the occupants of the Gibbs-Shepard house were just relaxing. They were Jenny and Jethro, two people happily in love with a baby on the way, and not Director Shepard and Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS' highest-ranking and (slightly crazy) dynamic duo.

Gibbs was presently in the shower. His latest project, that he'd put the finishing touches on that night, was a series of handmade rocking chairs that he was going to give as presents: there was a purple one for Ziva, a black and silver one for Abby, a green one for Jenny, and because he had a soft spot, a there was also a pink miniature rocking chair for Ella Brave, too. However, since Gibbs had been working mostly with primer and the fumes caused Jenny to get sick even when she wasn't pregnant, he'd gone straight to the shower after applying the last coat of primer to wash the smell off himself as thoroughly as possible.

Unable to follow Gibbs to the basement to watch him work, Jenny was instead stretched out on the couch in the living room. She'd completely put work aside, and busied herself with making the living room look festive. By the time she was done, a small artificial tabletop tree had been assembled and was on the side table next to the big bookshelf and had tinsel wrapped around its branches, although there was also a box of other Christmas decorations waiting to be opened and put on the tree, a few things like glass holiday figurines had been places around the room, and there was also a pair of stockings hanging near the fireplace, one for her and one for her love.

Aside from admiring her handiwork, Jenny had also found some holiday music records and put one on while she got out her knitting bag and began to work on her own project. She was making blankets because there were so many little ones in her life or else that were going to be making a debut into her life, and she was up to four completed blankets: one for Ella Brave, one for Alison Joy, one for Rivka Faith, and one for one of the Sciuto-McGee babies. The blanket that she was currently working on was for the second Scuito-McGee child, and the one after that was going to be for her own. She was a very fast knitter, so she knew that she was going to be able to meet her goal in record time.

At the moment, though, Jenny was getting distracted because the baby in her belly had just woken up from a nap and was currently stretching out and turning somersaults. That was only adding to some of the distraction, though. The rest of her distraction was in her left leg—because of an old (but healed) wound she'd sustained, whenever it rained or got extra cold outside, the pain would flare up and make her leg become stiff.

If Jenny didn't lead the life that she did, she would have blamed it on being an older mother, but she knew perfectly well was from one of the injuries she'd gotten while on an adventure with Ziva, which she wouldn't have gotten if she hadn't been in the NCIS for her entire adult life.

* * *

"Your leg acting up again, Jen?"

The redhead jumped—she hadn't noticed Gibbs return. He was dressed in a sweatshirt and sweatpants, and freshly showered, too. Jenny wanted to jump his bones immediately, but she had a feeling that it would be a bad idea with a bum leg.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Okay." Gibbs told her as he moved around the room to the windows, shutting the curtains. "You know the drill."

Jenny did, and kept her tank top on, but shimmied out of her pajamas pants and was just down to her skivvies. Moving from the last window to the couch, Gibbs placed Jenny's legs in his lap and began messaging the tender area of his lover's leg, in this case, her calf.

"I may not have seen combat the way that you did," Jenny said after a few moments. "But I sure have seen a lot of other things to earn me battle scars."

"That's for sure." Gibbs gave a nod towards Jenny's rounded middle. "How's our little guy?"

Jenny put her knitting aside and pulled back her tank top to expose her big six-and-a-half month belly. Just before they'd gone to see Ziva and Rachel, Jenny and Gibbs had found out that they were expecting a healthy baby boy. They were completely over the moon.

"He's very jumpy, but I think that's because he likes that his home is no longer confined by my shirt. It also feels like he's got someone in there with him."

Gibbs arched his eyebrows at Jenny. "Still on that, are you?"

"Why else would I feel and look as big as a house, even though I've never been pregnant before? How much did Kelly weigh when she was born?"

"Eight pounds, three ounces. We called her Porker."

Jenny groaned. "I'm _doomed."_

Gibbs cast around for a change in subject and pointed to the scar that was giving Jenny trouble.

"How did you get this in the first place?"

"On my last adventure with Ziva before she joined the team."

"Cairo, right?"

Jenny nodded. "We chased a terrorist from Istanbul to Damascus to Cairo. She shot the guy for me, shot him dead between the eyes and then stayed up with me through the night, keeping me alive because the guy still shot me."

With his other hand, Gibbs gently dragged his fingers briefly drew circles around Jenny's other wound, from one of their own adventures, longer ago.

"What are the odds that you get shot twice in the same leg?"

Jenny shuddered, but only because she saw and felt Gibbs' hand slowly move in an upwards direction to area that definitely wasn't her leg.

Almost regretfully, she moved his hand back.

"Pretty astronomical, I'd say, but after we were rescued and the case was closed, I wasn't allowed to come home yet."

"Your leg was that bad?"

"Yep. The doctors wouldn't let me leave the hospital without starting intense physical therapy. Eli heard about it and insisted that I stay with him and Ziva."

"Did you?"

"Oh, yes." Jenny confirmed. "I took a leave of absence and lived with then Davids in Tel Aviv for a year. Eli treated me like one of his children, and he even paid for all of my medical expenses."

"What a swell guy. How were you and Ziva?"

"As thick as thieves before long, and that's really saying something because we were already friends by that point. When it came time for me to start to start rehabilitation away from the hospital, Ziva took me sightseeing and even to her favorite places from her childhood. She also never missed even of my therapy appointments and was always there for me when I was having a bad day."

"It sounds like the Davids imprinted on you."

"Well, I imprinted on them, too, because it was nice to have a family again." Jenny confessed, sad that she was the only one left from the Shepards of 2917 Oakridge Lane. "Rivka and Talia were both dead by that point, and I never met Ari, but I know that Ziva imprinted on me like a baby duckling."

"You really care about her, don't you?"

Jenny felt Gibbs' gaze on her, and when she looked over at him, she saw his blue eyes looking into her green ones.

"She's as good as my baby, Leroy," she answered seriously. "And she knows it."

"How did you meet her?"

"That's a bit of a tale."

"We have all night, and I'm curious now."

"Okay, but get comfortable. It goes like this…"

 **TEL AVIV**

 **NOVEMBER 2000**

 _"Here you are, miss: The Mossad Headquarters, although I am not sure why a woman traveling by herself would wish to come to this establishment, of all places."_

 _Jenny looked through her taxicab window to survey the big, beautiful building. In the desert sun, its white bricks were gleaming brightly. She hoped that this part of her trip wasn't for naught. She wanted to leave with her mission accomplished._

 _"Oh, I have my reasons."_

 _Exercising a lot of willpower, Jenny looked away from the building and pulled her wallet from her purse._

 _"How much do I owe you for the fare?"_

 _A few minutes later, Jenny had paid her taxi driver the correct amount of money and exited the vehicle, stepping out into the heat. It was early afternoon and very hot, even for Tel Aviv in November._

 _Luckily, it was a short walk from where she'd been dropped off, and when she was inside, she was immediately thankful for the invention of air conditioning. As she looked around, marveling over the modern design of the interior of the building, she observed many people going about their business and coming to and from different appointments all around her. Jenny also noticed that none of the women wore head coverings on their heads, so she quickly took hers off and stuffed it into the front pocket of her bag. In a bit of last-minute grooming, Jenny_ _shook out her beautiful, cascading bright orange hair to keep it from looking matted, since it had already been covered for so many hours that day. She also brushed out a few wrinkles of her business clothes—in any culture, a good impression was everything, and she was keen on getting all of her ducks in a row today._

 _No sooner had she finished her sprucing, than she noticed a very important-looking and very beautiful woman dressed in business attire that wouldn't have been out of place at NCIS, and when she was close enough, she shook Ziva's hand and spoke with the most dazzling Israeli accent Jenny had heard yet._

 _"Boker tov." the other woman greeted her. "Good morning. I am Orli Elbaz."_

 _Jenny withdrew her hand when the handshake ended and politely said, "How do you do? I'm Special Agent Jennifer Shepard from the NCIS in Quantico, Virginia."_

 _Before Jenny could show Orli her credentials, though, Orli gave her a very warm smile._

 _"We were informed by your director of your mission and of your request, so we have been expecting you, and we would love to help."_

 _Jenny was both surprised and impressed because this phase of her journey was already asking a lot._

 _"Wow," she finally managed. "Thank you, m'am."_

 _"Do call me Orli—everyone here does—and you are very welcome. The Mossad needs all of the allies it can get, especially American ones."_

 _"Well, I will do my best to make sure things go right."_

 _"As will we."_

 _Orli continued to make conversation with Jenny until they arrived at what looked like a waiting room. There was another person the couch, but she was preoccupied with a book, so Jenny watched as Orli greeted a person behind a desk near a large wooden door. Jenny assumed that she was a secretary because she returned Orli's greeting in a formal way and asked in Hebrew if she needed anything, returning to her computer when Orli said no and turned to Jenny._

 _"Is there anything that you wish to know about me, Jennifer?"_

 _"Who are you in relation to the director?"_

 _"I am his second-in-command, and I have been with him through many things, both good… and bad."_

 _The sadness in Orli's tone, in spite of the bold face she was putting on, was very palpable._

 _"What happened?" Jenny asked gently._

 _"Two weeks ago, the director's wife and younger daughter passed away within days of each other because of injuries they sustained when a bomb went off at the marketplace where they were shopping."_

 _"Oh, that's horrible! I am so sorry!" Jenny said, expressing her sympathy sincerely. "How is the director now?"_

 _"He is coping, but thank you. That is very nice of you to ask, and he will be pleased."_

 _"Does the director have any other children?" Jenny wanted to know._

 _"A son, and another daughter. One left the country after the second funeral, but the other remains here in Tel Aviv."_

 _"I understand."_

 _Orli smiled, privately pleased that Jenny was digesting all of this information without freaking out. "Come now, please. The director is just through here."_

 _Seeing her cue, the secretary rose, opened the door and saw them in to the director's office before closing the door behind them again._

 _They were in a nicely-decorated office, and though Jenny was dying to look at a Van Gogh painting that was hanging next to a display case of diplomas and certificates, but she quickly reminded herself that this was just not the time._

 _"Director Eli David," Orli said to the sharply-dressed man behind the desk._

 _"Allow me to introduce you to Special Agent Jennifer Shepard of the NCIS in America."_

 _Eli stood and shook hands with Jenny. "Shalom, Special Agent Shepard. It is good to meet you."_

 _Jenny returned his greeting. "Shalom, director, and it's good to meet you, too. I'm also very sorry about what happened to your wife and your daughter."_

 _Eli thanked her and indicated for her to sit in the chair opposite his desk as he sat at his own._

 _"Is this your first time to Israel?"_

 _Jenny nodded. "Yes, and I already really like it."_

 _"Good, good." Eli approved. "How long have you been in the country?"_

 _"Twenty-four hours now—just enough time to unpack at my hotel and sleep off the jet lag."_

 _"Then would you like a cup of tea? Orli has just brewed a fresh pot of Earl Grey."_

 _Jenny looked to the corner of the room, towards a kitchenette area where Orli was preparing a full blue-and-white china tea set on a matching tray. There was even a selection of biscuits._

 _"I would like that, yes." Jenny nodded. "Thank you."_

 _Orli brought the tea set over and served the beverage—first because she was a guest, she set out a cup for Jenny made to her preferences, followed by a cup for Eli, and then she made and sat one on the table for herself before sitting down in the empty chair beside her new friend's._

 _After more small talk while they drank tea and ate biscuits, Eli brought the conversation around to the topic at hand._

 _"We understand that you've been assigned to do a solo mission that you are on the trail of a pair of drug runners that are like snakes in the grass, but who could lead you to their leader, who is rumored to be hiding out somewhere in Tamil Tigers territory in Sri Lanka."_

 _"And," Orli threw in. "That you are appealing to us because you are looking for a bodyguard."_

 _"That is all correct. Have you received my paperwork about this?"_

 _"That, as well as a copy of your outstanding service record, and the letters of recommendation from your director, a Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and a Judge Deborah Amos. Orli and I have read and reviewed everything thoroughly._ _Orli has surely told you by now that she and I want to help, yes?"_

 _"Yes, she did."_

 _Eli looked to his partner. "Did you tell her…?"_

 _Orli shook her head. "No. I decided that that is more your place than mine."_

 _Intrigued, Jenny decided to take a chance and ask, "I beg your pardon, but tell me what, please?"_

 _Eli turned back to his guest. "We have already decided on someone for you."_

 _"Really? Who?"_

 _Eli paged his secretary, asking her to send in the other occupant of the reception area. The doors opened and in came a very beautiful girl who, despite her athletic build and professional appearance, looked like she'd been through some kind of traumatic upheaval. Jenny also wouldn't have put her past nineteen years old, at the most._

 _Eli and Orli stood, and following their lead, Jenny also stood._

 _Eli beckoned to the girl and said proudly to Jenny, "This is my oldest daughter, Ziva. She is nineteen, speaks many languages, and has been trained in Mossad tactics for combat, defense, and weapons expertise."_

 _"Those are just some of Ziva's best assets," Orli added, also sounding proud. "And there are more, but out of everyone considered, Ziva is the best of the best, and quite looking forward to working with you."_

 _Jenny looked over at the girl, and though she didn't know it yet, Ziva David was going to become one of the best and greatest people she would ever know in her entire life._

 _"Shalom." Jenny greeted her. "I'm Jennifer, but you can call me Jen, if you wish."_

 _Ziva actually smiled at her, albeit a small one. "Alright, Jen. When do you wish to start?"_

 _"As soon as you can gather your things and return here."_

 _"Then I will be back in five minutes. Please excuse me."_

 _Ziva left, and for good measure, Orli followed her out._

 _When they were alone, Eli turned to Jenny. "My wife and my youngest child are both dead now, due to violence, and my only son, he has been wayward since we buried my wife. I do not even know where he is anymore. Ziva is all I have left."_

 _"Something else happened to her besides the deaths of her mother and her sister, and the departure of her brother, didn't it?"_

 _"Yes, but that is for her to share, if or when she chooses."_

 _"I understand."_

 _Eli shifted his weight from one foot to the other, suddenly unsure of how best to phrase his next words._

 _"What is it?" Jenny prompted kindly._

 _"Will you look after Ziva? I know it is her job to look after you now, but please—she has lost much, and could really use a friend."_

 _Understanding loss all too well, Jenny answered with zero hesitation, "I promise to look after Ziva."_

 _A half hour later found the new pair back at Jenny's hotel, and with a lot of time to kill before their targets were due to even arrive in Tel Aviv. In the meantime, Ziva had dropped her things off in Jenny's room and they were now down in the hotel gift shop._

 _"Do you like it?"_

 _Jenny had noticed Ziva admiring a purple head scarf._

 _"Hm?" Ziva glanced at the scarf and then back to Jenny. "Yes, I do."_

 _"Then I'll get it for you."_

 _Ziva turned red. "You do not have to do that."_

 _"No, but I want to, Ziva. Think of it as a token of our friendship—you do already call me Jen."_

 _"That is true." Ziva handed the scarf to Jenny and took down from the display case a green one. "I noticed this particular scarf, and thought it would suit you because of your eyes. It is lovely, yes?"_

 _The scarf was a dark green color and had a floral pattern._

 _"It's very lovely."_

 _Ziva beamed, pleased with herself, and Jenny felt her heart melting because just for a moment, she saw a bright, happy person—who Ziva must have really been, back when her family had been whole and happy. Jenny decided to make it her mission to get her new partner to smile more. To have moments where she could actually act like someone her age, instead of someone who was hiding behind who knew just how much pain._

 _"Excellent." Ziva told her. "Then I will purchase this one for you—a token of my friendship."_

 _"I like the sound of that." Jenny checked her watch, which was currently set to local time. Do you swim? If we hurry, we can get to the pool before it gets crowded."_

 _"Actually, I learned to swim because my father pushed me on purpose into a pool when I was a child."_

 _Jenny stared._

 _"It was not the deep end, and I learned quickly, like a fish to liquid."_

 _"Okay, I know Hebrew to English translates funny on occasion, but if you help me with my Hebrew skills, I'll help you brush up on your American colloquialisms and slang."_

 _"Deal. Did I say the phrase incorrectly?"_

 _"Yes. It's 'like a fish to water,' actually."_

 _"Like a fish to water." Ziva echoed._

 _"Good job." Jenny praised before motioned for Ziva to follow her. "Come now so we can go."_

 _Ziva joined her and they headed towards the register, walking side-by-side, chatting merrily and making plans for the day._

 _Less than two hours together, and they already knew they were going to be friends for life._

"And that," Jenny said with a flourish. "Is how I met Ziva."

"That's a story I would have never guessed." Gibbs told her before gesturing towards her hair. "Is the scarf you're wearing as a headband the one that Ziva gave you?"

Nodding, Jenny tugged on it until it came out and handed it to Gibbs. "Besides Israel, this has been with me to Sri Lanka, Johannesburg, Sierra Leone, Istanbul, Cairo, Damascus, all of Eastern Europe, and even the Galápagos Islands and Hawaii."

Impressed, Gibbs examined the silk scarf and handed it back. "It's very pretty, Jen. Ziva still have the one you got her?"

"Mhm, and she wears it on special occasions… ooo…"

Jenny had put her scarf on the coffee table next to the couch and was now rubbing soothing circles on her middle, but also wrinkling her nose.

"Your boy is being a pest." she griped.

"Oh, so he's _mine_ right now, is he?"

Jenny shot him a pouting expression. "Only when he kicks a lot, like he's doing right now."

"Is the stiffness in your leg gone, at least?"

Jenny flexed her leg and rotated her ankle experimentally. It was back to normal.

"Yep, and everything it back in working order."

"But the Little Prince is still being jumpy?"

"I don't know if 'little' or 'prince' are the correct ways to describe him right now, but at the moment, he's jumpier than ever."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at her. "There is one way that always quiets him…"

Just the way he looked at her had her caving instantly.

"Oh, alright, but I just have one request."

Gibbs got to his feet and helped Jenny to hers.

"Name it."

"That we do it up in the bedroom, on the bed. There's no room on the couch."

Gibbs held his lover's hand to his lips and kissed it. "Your wish is my command."

Over an hour later, Jenny and Gibbs lay in bed together after two very satisfying rounds of sex. It was a little difficult because of Jenny's baby bump, but they still made it work, and they definitely made it enjoyable. They were both currently blissed out.

The baby was also very content and moving about so lazily, that it was only every few minutes. Jenny knew her son well enough to know that those kinds of movements meant that he was asleep and dreaming.

Beside her, Gibbs fell asleep quickly.

Jenny lay awake, reflecting on how much her life had changed in the last year alone.

Last holiday season, she'd been so lonely that she spent Christmas and New Year's in Hawaii, just to cheer herself up.

Now, it was four days to Christmas, and she lived with the love of her life in a beautiful house that was warm and inviting, instead of at her old cavern of a house. She and Gibbs were even expecting a baby boy together, meaning that the Gibbs name was going to live on. That, alone gave her an incredible amount of pride and joy.

Jenny's last thought before she finally fell asleep completely was that she couldn't ask for anything more because this was what a happy ending felt like, and she loved everything about it.


	30. Return To Normal

The next morning, Ziva woke up in a good mood.

For starters, she and Rachel were going to be released from the hospital.

She was also going to be allowed to go back to NCIS, as long as she didn't go out into the field. But that was just as well, because it was only three more days to Christmas and just two more until a well-deserved vacation.

She also had plans with Tony to tell the others of their engagement when she returned to work, and she was also going to use her desk duty to formally tender her resignation at The Mossad. She knew that her old colleagues weren't going to like it, but since she'd appraised Eli of her plans and he hadn't fought her on it, there wouldn't be too much backlash about it.

Most of all, at the end of the day, she would be seeing her daughters. She was really looking forward to that.

The first event, before all of that, though, happened before she even left her hospital room.

* * *

"Ziva, may we came in?"

Shutting off the TV because the morning talk shows were unappealing, Ziva looked towards the door and then grinned broadly when she saw who had come calling on her now.

It was Rachel, dressed to leave, and she was carrying Aaliyah, who was dressed in a bright ladybug-themed outfit.

"Of course, Rachel!" Ziva beckoned to her. "Come in!"

Rachel entered and sat on the bed when Ziva made room for them. She also couldn't help but laugh when Aaliyah dive-bombed towards Ziva, wanting to be with her.

"Well, hello." Ziva said to Aaliyah when she caught her. "I have missed you. Yes, I have."

Aaliyah giggled cutely at the sound of Ziva's voice and snuggled closely to her friend.

"Oh, precious girl." Ziva began to gently rock Aaliyah. "You will always have a hold on my heart."

Immediately content by the feelings of both Ziva's heartbeat and the feeling of Rivka Faith moving against her, Aaliyah began to suck her thumb, cooing to herself when Ziva began to stroke her hair.

When Ziva turned to Rachel, she saw the girl was dressed in a high-end outfit, and she was even wearing a blue headscarf, covering her hair, just like she wanted, so she could honor Ibrahim's memory.

"That is a very beautiful scarf, Rachel." complimented Ziva.

"Thank you. I told Salma that I wanted to start wearing scarves again, and she gave me one of hers." Rachel explained. "This morning, she came by with new clothes and a box of new scarves from CityCenterDC."

That was a very nice shopping center in town that Ziva had once visited with Jenny.

"How very nice of her. Is she at your room now?"

"Yep, and so is my mom—they're looking after Caleb and Moses while Aaliyah and I come to say goodbye to you."

"Then you are cleared to go back to New York?"

Again, Rachel nodded and then gestured towards her friend's hospital garb and equipment. "How much longer is your sentence?"

"Just for a little bit longer: Tony is on his way here, and I will have my final check up. I should be cleared after that. Until then," Ziva gestured over herself with her free hand. "I am looking like this."

When Ziva had made the sweeping gesture, Rachel had noticed her friend's engagement ring and caught her hand so she could examine the ring for herself.

"Tony proposed to you, huh?"

Ziva nodded bashfully, when Rachel withdrew her hold. "Mhm, and I am over the moon, but the only non-medical people who currently know are my father… and now you."

"But you and Tony are waiting until you get back to NCIS to start telling the others?"

"Bingo."

"Then mum's the word. How is Rivka?"

"My daughter is 'as happy as a clam,' as the saying goes, which is a relief, because yesterday, she was positioned horizontally for hours."

Rachel winced. "Aaliyah did that too me for a week before she was born. Did Rivka right herself?"

"Yes, thank goodness, but how are you, my friend? I heard about the ketamine you were pumped full of."

"It's all gone, but it still feels like I've been run over by a truck. Hopefully, I can get some sleep on the train."

"My fingers are crossed for you…"

Picking up on Ziva's hesitation, Rachel spoke gently. "What is it?"

"You still have my card, yes?"

The things that Rachel had dropped during her abduction had been returned to her. "Indeed I do."

"There are still things to be hammered out, but when they are, will you and your family come to our wedding?"

Rachel's heart jumped because the question was unexpected, but also at the same time caused her to feel a lot of joy.

"Of course we will!"

Using a stationary set on Ziva's bedside table, Rachel quickly jotted down a few lines of information and pointed to the paper.

"This is my number and the address of our brownstone in Manhattan. Give me a ring when things are hammered out."

"Or perhaps even sooner when Rivka has been born—we are going to be doing birth announcements."

Rachel perked up at the thought. "We did that for the boys, and for Aaliyah. In fact, I think Eli keeps his copies and up-to-date pictures of the kids in his office with pictures of you, your mother, and your siblings."

"My father may do questionable things, but he really loves children."

Fighting back a blush, Rachel said, "I don't want to come off sounding like I'm fighting for Eli's affection because I know how much he loves you, but he's been more of a father to me than my own ever has been. I always did something nice for him on Father's Day in Israel."

"As I said when we were gone, it does not bother me that you are close with my father. It actually makes me relieved that he still had one child with him when I could not be there."

At that, Rachel beamed so largely that Ziva thought it was going to jump right off her face.

"I am so glad that we are friends now, Ziva."

"As am I, Rachel. As am I."

 _KNOCK KNOCK!_

They looked up towards the open door to see that Lane Majors had returned, and also that Doctor Vanderbilt and Tony were with her, having run into them in the hallway.

Rachel sighed when she saw her mother. "Time to go?"

"Yes, and Salma is keeping an eye on Caleb and Moses in the waiting room now."

"Alright."

As Rachel stood, Ziva picked Aaliyah up and held her in front of her, facing her.

"Aaliyah," Ziva called softly to her. "Will you wake for a moment so I can see your beautiful blue eyes again?"

The little girl had indeed started to doze, but she also began stirring when she heard Ziva talking to her and woke to give her friend a sleepy-eyed grin. Ziva felt like her heart was melting.

"I am going to miss you, dear little friend, but it will not be forever." Ziva kissed Aaliyah on the tip of her nose. "We will see you again before long, and then you can meet Ella, Alison, and sweet baby Rivka, who has been kicking you all the time."

Aaliyah yawned hugely and rubbed her eyes. She could barely stay awake.

"Okay, little one. Time for you to go back to ima." Ziva kissed Aaliya's cheeks, forehead, and nose. "Until we meet again."

Ziva gave Aaliyah back and then bid Rachel farewell, her heart already sad because it felt like she really was bidding farewell to part of her family farewell.

When they were gone, Tony entered and kissed Ziva on the lips.

"How are you, babe?" he asked.

"So _very_ hungry, and ready to leave."

"I'll take you to eat as soon as Doctor Vanderbilt gives you the all-clear."

Ziva looked over at her doctor. "May we begin?"

* * *

Much to Ziva's relief, everything went smoothly, and she and Rivka Faith checked out perfectly fine.

As she'd anticipated when it came to removing the paper patches from her skin that had been supporting the monitoring wires, it was an unpleasant experience, much like having six band-aids removed. That part felt like it took forever, but it also ended and Ziva was finally free of the hospital and on the way to breakfast with her fiancé.

After breakfast, Tony surprised Ziva by telling her that on instructions from both Gibbs and Jenny, neither of them had to return to NCIS until noon. It was eight-thirty, and Ziva was desperate to sleep in her own bed again. She slept until eleven.

* * *

"Oh, you're here! You're here!"

This was Abby's greeting to Ziva when she stepped off the elevator and entered the bullpen.

Usually, Abby would have given tackled her in a hug, but seeing as they were both very close to their third trimesters and that the goth was carrying twice the precious cargo Ziva was, she settled for giving her a warm hug.

"Hello, Abby." Ziva returned the hug. "I saw you yesterday, though."

"But you were in a hospital, hooked up to a million wires and even oxygen and saline!" Abby pointed out. "Now you're perfectly normal!"

Wrinkling her nose only slightly when she felt an errant kick from Rivka Faith, Ziva nodded. "I am quite pleased by this, also."

"Good, because I missed you." Abby physically turned Ziva towards the entrance of the bullpen. "Look who else did."

Ziva saw McGee, Ducky, and Palmer gathered around her desk, and when she looked up to the top of the staircase, she saw Jenny and Gibbs watching her. She waved, and they waved back. Jenny even blew a friendly kiss.

Unable to keep quiet for much longer, Tony sidestepped Abby and Ziva and did a turn about face to look at his lover.

"Look what else appeared while you were away, Z!"

He pointed to Ziva's desk to reveal a pile of neatly stacked parcels, all wrapped in different types of blue, gold, and silver foil or wrapping paper. There was even a bag of chocolate coins on topmost package.

Ziva set her things down by her desk and took in the sight of all of the presents and then looked at the others.

"All of this… for me?"

Abby bobbed her head. "Yep! We know that Hanukkah doesn't start for a few more days, but we still wanted to do this for you!"

"Well, thank you, Abigail."

Tony added, _"I_ wanted to help, but _Abby_ said no."

Abby arched an eyebrow at him. "If I'd let _you_ help, you would have planted a _confetti cannon_ or two!"

Ziva shuddered. "The last thing that the baby and I need are any sudden surprises because those jolt her into hiccups."

"It still would have been fun." Tony mumbled. "For me…"

"No uterus, no opinion." Ziva shot back.

Tony turned to McGee. "Probie? Help?"

McGee shook his head. "Hell, no! I want to live to see Christmas!"

"Then what could I have done?"

Beside them, Ducky threw up his hands in exasperation and turned to Palmer.

"You were correct, Mister Palmer." The medical examiner sighed, slipping a dollar to his student. "Ten minutes back, and Anthony, Ziva, and Abigail are already squabbling."

Palmer happily pocketed the money. "And that's another dollar towards the new Halo game!"

"Let's go, Mister Palmer." Ducky turned and motioned for the young man to follow him. "We have to get back to work."

As they headed towards the elevator, McGee called after them, "Jimmy, wait! You play Halo, too?"

"Hey, McDork!" Tony called before McGee could get an answer. "Help me! Abby and Ziva are escalating, and I don't know why!"

Rolling his eyes, McGee walked back into the fold to help settle things.

Up above, at the top of the stairs, Gibbs turned to Jenny.

"Our kids are _so_ weird." he said with a sigh.

"Yes," Jenny agreed. "But they're ours, even if they're all grown up."

"I can't believe we're having one our own. Still sure you want to?"

Affronted, Jenny playfully slugged him in the arm. "And just for that, you can pick up the tab for lunch! Come on!"

Meanwhile, Ziva and Abby had extracted themselves out the squabble, leaving Tony and McGee to just argue with each other.

"Ziva, are you still on for you-know-what on the twenty-fourth?"

Abby was of course talking about her upcoming performance for the winter gala. Abby had found out at a karaoke night that she'd brought Ziva to at a bar not long after she met that Ziva had a beautiful singing voice. She was even the one who had suggested that Ziva participate in the talent portion of the NCIS gala this year.

"Oh, absolutely. We will be there at seven on the nose."

"Who's nose?" called a voice. "What's happening at seven?"

It was Tony. He'd paused in his tiff to see what they were talking about.

"Nothing, Tony." Ziva and Abby told him in unison.

Deciding to push their buttons a little further, Tony tried to wheedle information out of them, but Ziva successfully achieved in removing herself out of any further conversation by distracting Tony and Abby in pointing out that McGee had accidentally tied his tie askew and that it was inside out. Like vultures to prey, they circled in on him and cornered him into another corner of the bullpen, bombarding him with questions about why he could have possibly been so careless with such an important part of his outfit.

Quite pleased that balance had been restored in her world, Ziva sat down at her desk and turned on her computer. She logged in, fired up her email account and selected her father's email address.

For a moment, before she started her message, she paused and looked around the bullpen.

Ducky and Palmer were back down in Autopsy, going about their daily business, but she was sure that if they hadn't left, they would have been watching from the sidelines as Tony and Abby turned into Good Cop and Bad Cop to see how much information they could squeeze out McGee, asking now if he had a new girlfriend. She was also sure Jenny and Gibbs were on the top floor somewhere, avoiding them altogether so they didn't get dragged into the ridiculousness, too.

Outside the bullpen, the rest of the agents that worked on the floor were going about their business as usual.

She and Tony still hadn't told the others about their engagement, but that could wait for just a little bit longer.

At least until Tony, Abby, and McGee had forgotten their squabble.

Yes, thought Ziva. This is normal, and I would not trade it for anything else in the world.

And, she turned her attention back to her computer screen and began typing the opening line of her resignation letter, which would officially sever her ties from The Mossad.

 _Dear Father..._


	31. The Twenty-Fourth

Before long, it was Christmas Eve, and Ziva was feeling very giddy.

Normally, she was indifferent to it because she didn't celebrate Christmas, but now that she had a family of her own, complete with children to spoil, she was really looking forward to it and Christmas Day. Plus, Christmas Eve meant that it was the day before Ella Brave's birthday.

At the moment, however, they were at the Hilton Hotel, where NCIS had rented out a few rooms for their gala. While Ziva and Tony spotted many of their colleagues and they had arrived on time, they had yet to spot any of the rest of their family.

"Ima, where is everyone?" Ella Brave asked from the security of Tony's arms.

"They are around here somewhere, baby dove." Ziva told her as she hoisted Alison Joy higher up on her hip. "Do not worry."

Ziva's words rang true because not even a minute later, she heard someone call her name.

"Ziva!"

It was Eli, looking very sharp in a tuxedo and black leather shoes. Because it was a special occasion in which Ziva was having an important role, he was even wearing his best yarmulke, too.

"Shalom, abba!" Ziva said enthusiastically, giving him a kiss on each cheek in greeting. "I am so pleased to see you!"

Eli stroked his daughter's cheek affectionately. "I am pleased to come and spend time with you and your family, without anything dire hanging over us. You look very beautiful, by the way, chickpea."

Ziva grinned and stood a little taller. In honor of the special occasion, she'd bought herself a new dress. This one was made of silk, and was a beautiful sapphire color. It also felt very comfortable to her, and it hugged her curves in all the right places. Her hair and makeup were done to compliment her appearance, and tying everything together, though nobody could see because of the length of her dress, she was wearing silver flats on her feet.

"Thank you again. How about you say hello to Tony?"

The two men exchanged handshakes and hellos, now truly comfortable with each other after their dinner chat.

"I have not been to this place in many years." Eli told Tony.

"Really?" the younger man asked. "When was the last time?"

"Just after Ziva's first adventure with Jennifer. Actually, Jennifer and I came here together for a conference."

Tony looked over at his fiancée. "How _did_ you meet her?"

"That is another story for another day."

"Alright." he turned his attention to Ella Brave. "Do you want to say hello now?"

Feeling very shy at the sight of Eli David all of a sudden, Ella Brave had gone very red and managed a small wave before giggling and burying her face in Tony's shoulder.

"Okay, let us try with your sister." Ziva said before turning to Alison Joy and stroking her cheek with one of his knuckles. "Hello, my little porcupine. Will you look at me?"

Quiet, but only because she was waking up from a nap, the baby rewarded Ziva with a sunny smile.

"There you are." Ziva cooed and then directed her attention to Eli. "Can you say hello to your sabba?"

Alison Joy noticed Eli and made a very happy sound before leaning out of Ziva's arms, reaching for her grandfather. Extremely surprised and flattered, Eli took his granddaughter into his own arms, giving her a hug and talking to her. Shyness gone, Ella Brave requested to be held, too, thrilled when Eli obliged her, and then impressed that he could hold both her and her sister at the same time.

She, Alison Joy, and Eli seemed lost in their own world together, enjoying each other's company.

It made Ziva's heart overjoyed.

"Z?"

She turned at the sound of her nickname and saw Tony watching her.

"I am fine, my dear. I was just wish that my mother and Talia were still alive, because believe me," Ziva arched her back appreciatively when Tony began rubbing the back of it. "They would have loved to be here, and they would be so proud that I have a family of my own."

"Ima!" a tiny voice cried suddenly. "Ima, look!"

Ziva looked around to see Gibbs, Jenny, McGee, Abby, Ducky, and Palmer approaching, all dressed in their holiday best. The rest of her huge, beautiful, unusual family had arrived, and she was all of a sudden filled with an enormous amount of love and affection for all of them, especially when they all greeted Eli like an old friend.

In the midst of everything, Abby bustled over to Ziva, looking very adorable in a very beautiful purple and gold steampunk-styled holiday dress and shoes. Even with her big baby belly and her features being fuller because of her pregnancy hormones, in Ziva's opinion, Abby looked like a living doll.

"Are you ready?" the goth asked softly so the others didn't overhear.

"Yes, I am." Ziva turned to her beau, who was happily in the thick of things. "Tony? "

He looked over. "Yes?"

"I will be along in awhile, but how about you direct the family towards the seating area? You will know which seats are ours."

"Alright." Tony was curious, but nodded in acknowledgement. "See you when you're done."

Tony began herding everyone in the right direction while Ziva and Abby went in the opposite direction, towards the area where the talent show performers were gathering and checking in.

"Does McGee still not know that you are the host?" Ziva asked after they checked in and fell into line.

Abby shook her head and smiled wryly. "The word in 'emcee' in this instance, and no, he doesn't."

"Then everyone shall be _doubly_ impressed."

Abby nodded and then blew out a breath, massaging her bump. "The babies are super active tonight—they know I'm excited."

The goth was heavily pregnant now and absolutely feeling it because she was carrying two babies.

"Abby," Ziva said suddenly. "Do your babies have names yet?"

Abby nodded reaching for her friend's hand. "Here. I'll introduce you to them."

Ziva gave Abby her hand and put it on the top left corner of her bump. She pressed gently on the surface, and they were treated to a very gentle kick.

"That was Magnolia. She spends most of her time camped out by ribs, but she's much calmer, compared to her sister."

"You are having _two_ daughters?"

"Yep. Here."

She moved Ziva's hand to a spot near her navel, where instantly, they felt a barrage of irritated kicks; the baby inside was extremely irritated at having her slumber interrupted.

"What a _feisty_ little one." Ziva laughed, pulling her hand away. "Who is _this?"_

"This is my Sarahjane, and she kicks and punches the most. She's a capital nutbar, but Tim says that I'm getting a taste of my own medicine."

Ziva chuckled. "Magnolia and Sarahjane are unique names, but quite cute."

"Thanks! We named them after my mothers!"

"I beg your pardon, Abigail?"

"I was adopted by the parents who raised me when I was five days old." Abby explained. "Magnolia was my biological mother, and I found her and got to know her before she passed away when I was thirty."

"And so Sarahjane is your adoptive mother, yes?"

"Uh-huh, and she would like you a lot. Magnolia would have, too, for that matter…"

Ziva wanted to know why that was, but was interrupted by one of the program coordinators hurrying over to them, looking slightly stressed out.

Abby asked, "Lucy, what's wrong?"

"You're still good to emcee, right?"

"Of course!"

"That's a relief." Lucy turned to Ziva. "The opening act has just had to drop out, but you are the most confident performer we have. Will you go first?"

Ziva had been slated to go last.

"Sure. Is it time now?"

"Yes." Lucy motioned for Ziva and Abby to follow her. "This way, please."

They followed Lucy past the long line of the other talent show performers, and the next few minutes found them getting prepped for the curtain going up. Just as a microphone was being placed in front of Ziva and adjusted, she saw Abby go on to the stage and start talking to the crowd.

Next thing Ziva knew, the curtains were going up and Abby was exiting the stage.

She saw her family in the first Rowland f the audience, each of them surprised to see her, but pleased, nonetheless.

Remembering to smile, Ziva addressed the crowd. "As most of you know, I moved here from Israel a year ago, and now, much has changed, and I have never been so happy before. The best part is that my family has grown in ways that I could have never imagined. I dedicate this performance to them."

So she began to sing,

 _Have yourself a merry little Christmas_

 _Let your heart be light_

 _From now on, our troubles will be out of sight_

 _Have yourself a merry little Christmas_

 _Make the Yuletide gay_

 _From now on, our troubles will be miles away_

 _Here we are as in olden days_

 _Happy golden days of yore_

 _Faithful friends who are dear to us_

 _Gather near to us once more_

 _Through the years we all will be together_

 _If the fates allow_

 _So hang a shining star upon the highest bough_

 _And have yourself a merry little Christmas now_

 _Through the years we all will be together_

 _If the fates allow_

 _So hang a shining star upon the highest bough_

 _And have yourself a merry little Christmas now_

When Ziva finished, the whole room was applauding.

Upon reaching her seat, she found herself sitting between her father and her fiancé. Eli praised her for a job well done, while Tony leaned over and praised her for a job well done, too, also adding that he'd fallen even more in love with her because of how beautiful the performance had been. All that made Ziva feel incredibly loved.

This was going to be a great night.

Later, when the dance floor had opened, Ziva spent a lot of time on it during the slow songs, claiming that the baby was a fan. Tony knew this to be fact because a lot of evenings, after the kids were in bed for the night, he would find Ziva sorting through his record collection, looking for something to put on. Then they would slow dance together, holding each other and kissing each other, in between talking to Rivka Faith, telling her how much they couldn't wait to meet her and show her the ways of the world. It was Heaven for them.

Tony caught up with Ziva just as they DJ announced that it was time for the last song of the night and that it was for couples only.

"How are you, babe?" Tony asked as different couples, including their friends, took the floor while all the single people drifted back towards their seats. "Having fun?"

Ziva nodded as they both assumed the proper holds on each other for dancing. "I am having so much fun."

"I'm glad."

As the band started up, Tony led Ziva in the dance, prompting her to lean into him. Mesmerized by the music and the movement, Rivka Faith began moving against her parents, wanting to join in.

"Tony," Ziva said after a moment. "They are playing our song."

And sure enough, the lounge singer by the bandstand began to croon,

 _Wise men say_

 _Only fools rush in_

 _But I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Shall I stay?_

 _Would it be a sin_

 _If I can't help falling in love with you?_

 _Like a river flows_

 _Surely to the sea_

 _Darling, so it goes_

 _Some things are meant to be_

 _Take my hand,_

 _Take my whole life, too_

 _For I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Like a river flows_

 _Surely to the sea_

 _Darling, so it goes_

 _Some things are meant to be_

 _Take my hand,_

 _Take my whole life, too_

 _For I can't help falling in love with you_

 _For I can't help falling in love with you_

At the end of the song, Ziva gazed up at Tony, feeling a mixture of adoration, love, and lust towards him.

"What's up?" Tony asked her.

Ziva gave him a deep kiss on the lips. "I am so happy that in addition to being your partner, your best friend, and the mother of your children, that I am to be your wife, as well. Nothing makes me happier. You are the absolute love of my life, and I am so glad that I found you."

Tony returned Ziva's kiss. "You are the love of _my_ life, and I don't _ever_ want to be without you."

Ziva blushed and leaned back into her lover's arms. "Hold me? Just for a little bit longer?"

And so Tony held her.

For just a few more minutes, it felt like they were the only two people in the world.


End file.
